MovieSlate is an organized collection of screens, each designed around a particular task. Switch screens by tapping buttons in the “tab bar” at the bottom of the screen.

MOVIESLATE TABS & SCREENS

Here’s a brief summary of each of the tabs/screens (details appear later in this User Guide):

MovieSlate - use this screen to enter notes and basic information about the production, timecode, and current shot. After tapping the clapper sticks at the top of the screen to “start a shot”, the current timecode and all the slate’s info are saved to MovieSlate’s shot log History.

DataSlate - use this screen to display a single piece of meta data in large type, to be photographed by the camera. The data can be free-form text, or linked to MovieSlate data fields.

Camera - use this screen to enter additional, optional information about your camera such as Resolution, Exposure, ISO speed, shutter speed, and corresponding filename (for cameras that store video in digital files). This info is also saved to MovieSlate’s shot log History when the shot starts and ends. With a PRO Features subscription (optional in-app purchase), this screen has a Camera Control feature (arriving Late 2015), for connecting to, and remotely controlling a camera.

MultiCam - is part of a PRO Features subscription (optional in-app purchase). Use this screen to take continuous notes, simultaneously log, and start/stop shots for up to 26 cameras. When a MultiCam shot is in progress, the slate’s clappersticks are used to create a timecode-stamped "clappersticks" note, rather than starting/stopping a single camera shot. With the Camera Control feature (arriving Late 2015), this screen can be used to connect to, and remotely control multiple cameras.

Music Video - use this screen to choose a song from your iTunes music library. The chosen song is used for playback during a music video shoot. MovieSlate automatically syncs its timecode with your song. On the iPad, this screen is not actually a tab, but instead appears on the MovieSlate screen— tap the timecode display, then the keypad’s SYNC button and choose Sync to Song.

Sound Dept - this screen is used by Sound Mixers as an alternative/adjunct to the MovieSlate screen. Part of a PRO Features subscription (optional in-app purchase), this screen manages meta data such as sound roll, folder, media, filetype, sample rate, bit rate, ref tone, filename(s), and up to 32 tracks (each containing two notes).

History - use this screen to view, search, edit, duplicate, shot log data and notes— and to export/email various History Reports. MovieSlate’s shot log History is organized as a collection of Projects (one per production or television episode). Each Project is a collection of Shots. Each shot can contain a collection of Notes.

Settings - from this screen, configure MovieSlate to suit your particular workflow. You can configure both the app’s appearance and behavior. This is also where you’ll find the MovieSlate store, and MovieSlate Cloud registration, login, and settings.

Help - this screen contains much more than the User Guide you are reading now. The FAQs and how-to-videos are periodically updated over an internet connection. Please feel free to contact us with comments, suggestions, or bug reports.

Chat - part of a PRO Features subscription (optional in-app purchase). Use this screen to conduct on-set chats via WiFi with other MovieSlate users (no internet required).

Not all the tabs may fit on iPhone and iPod touch but MovieSlate allows you to slide the tab bar so you can see other tabs. To configure what tabs appear and to set their order: tap the Settings tab and then tap on Tabs.

From the Settings > Tabs screen you can rearrange your tabs— so that your most frequently used screens are always visible:

Portrait and Landscape orientations are supported throughout the app. The app’s screens redraw themselves as you rotate your iOS device.

The tab bar is hidden on the MovieSlate tab/screen, when your iOS device (except iPad) is rotated to the landscape orientation. To view the tabs again, simply rotate the iOS device back to a portrait orientation.

Tapping the System Lock Button - swipe up from below the bottom of the screen to reveal the Control Center. After doing so, a panel of buttons appears at the bottom of the screen. Tap the right-most icon in this panel (with the circle-arrow on it) to prevent or permit screen rotation.

SCREEN BRIGHTNESS

Quickly change the screen’s brightness by swiping up from below the bottom of the screen to reveal the Control Center. Then use the brightness slider that appears there.

Screen brightness can also be changed from the Settings app > Display & Brightness. When the Auto Brightness button is ON, iOS will automatically dim/brighten the screen to adapt to surrounding lighting. This setting can really help conserve an iOS device’s battery power.

On the left side of many fields is some vertical text that we call a label. Edit a label by tapping on it. Text field labels can also be edited from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields, and then tap on the round "i" button to the right of a field name.

DATA ENTRY TOOLS

To enter data into a field itself, tap on the center of the field. One of these entry tools will appear:

Keyboard - standard iOS keyboards.

Keypad - a small keyboard containing mostly numeric buttons. Other context-sensitive buttons may appear, depending upon the particular field being edited. Switch from the Keypad to the Keyboard by tapping the Keypad’s ABC button.

Snippet Chooser - a scrolling list of frequently-used phrases called “Snippets”. To add a snippet to the text field, tap the snippet, then tap the Insert button. Tap the comma button to add a comma and space to the text field. Tap the Clear button to remove all text from the field. Switch to the Keyboard by tapping the ABC button. Tap the Snippets: button (at the top of the Snippet Chooser) to switch between various snippet groups. You can manage your snippets and groups from MovieSlate’s > Settings > Text Snippets > Snippet Groups and assign a particular Snippet Group to a field from MovieSlate’s > Settings > Text Fields

Snippet Expansions - when using the Keyboard, snippet abbreviations can be auto-expanded into complete phrases. You can enable this feature from MovieSlate’s Settings > Snippets > Abbreviations.

Menus - are full-screen (on iPhone/iPod touch) lists of snippets that require a single tap to simultaneously insert a single snippet and close the menu. A Menu is handy for fields that contain a single word or phrase; while the Snippet Chooser can be better for entering multiple snippets into fields containing many words, such as Notes (particularly on iPhone and iPod touch).

Date Chooser - a scrolling list of months/days/years used for editing the DATE and/or other fields. To have the DATE field always use the current date, tap the Date Chooser’s Automatic button.

Filename Editor - the Camera, MultiCam, and Sound Dept screens all contain filename fields. MovieSlate supports many automated filenaming schemes (called filename input styles). When a filename field is tapped, a Filename Editor may, or may not appear. Many filename input styles automatically build filenames using static text, auto-incrementing numbers, and data from other fields— and so often require little or no user input because they are automatically updated each time a shot ends. Select, edit, and create filename input styles from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields.

When choosing Keypad, some fields can also be configured (such as SCENE) to use a particular data format such as “123ABC”. This tells the app how to format the next/previous SCENE number in the keypad and elsewhere.

When choosing Snippets, a specific Snippet Group can also be configured. The plain “Snippets” input style defaults to the most recently used Snippet Group.

When editing a field with the Keypad or Snippet Chooser, tap the ABC button to summon the Keyboard.

When editing a field with the Keyboard, long-tap the field to display the Edit Menu (used for Cut/Copy/Paste). Choose Snippets from the Edit menu to summon the Snippet Chooser. If the field’s existing text is not already in the Snippet Group, an Add ‘text’ button appears at the bottom of the Snippet Chooser.

When editing the DIR and DP fields with the keyboard, the Edit Menu contains a Contacts button, which summons the iOS Address Book from which a person’s name can be chosen.

INCREMENTING NUMERIC VALUES

Swiping. By swiping a finger upward on a field, you can advance to a numeric field’s next logical value. This is a convenient way to quickly increment the SLATE, ROLL, SCENE, TAKE and other fields which contain numeric data. Likewise, swipe downward on a field to decrement its numeric value. These swipes also work to increment/decrement the numeric elements (if any) of the SOUND FILE1 and SOUND FILE2 fields on the Sound Dept screen.

Filename Editing. Tap on a Filename field (FILENAME, SOUND FILE1, SOUND FILE2, or MULTICAM A-Z) to edit its elements. A Filename Editor appears. On either side of a filename’s numeric element are plus and minus buttons used to increment and decrement a numeric value.

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Keypad up/down buttons. Alternatively, tap a numeric field, then tap one of the black buttons (with up/down arrows and numerals) in the Keypad’s upper right corner. When the value on the black button exceeds three characters, then only the right-most character is displayed on the button (along with a larger up/down triangle).

Auto Increment Slate/Take/Filenames. MovieSlate can optionally auto-increment the SLATE and TAKE numbers each time a shot ends as well as numeric portions (if any) of all FILENAME fields. Enable those behaviors from MovieSlate’s Settings > Slate Behavior > Clapper Behavior > When Shots End.

MovieSlate’s shot log History is organized as a collection of Projects (one per production or television episode). Each Project is a collection of Shots. Each shot can contain a collection of Notes.

To create a Note, tap a button labeled Note (or a button with the icon shown at the top-right of this page) available on many MovieSlate screens including: Slate, MultiCam, Sound Dept, and History. The Note editor (shown here) will then appear.

Notes are entered into the yellow portion of this screen using either the keyboard, or the list of Snippets (as shown the first screen here).

Enter a Snippet into the note by tapping an item in the Snippets list at the bottom of the screen. Below this list is an Add Line Breaks ON/OFF switch to automatically insert line breaks along with a snippet.

Choose a Project. Tap the slate’s PROD (Production) field to create a new Project, or choose/edit/clone an existing Project. You must enter a Production name for each Project. All other Project fields are completely optional, and can appear in some of MovieSlate’s History Reports. With the optional Timecode Sync plugin enabled, “Networked Projects” from other MovieSlates on the WiFi network will also appear after tapping PROD > Choose a Project.

Enter data into fields (as described previously). Most slate field data is persistent; only changing when you manually edit the data. MovieSlate can automatically update some data for you (such as the DATE), and auto-increment some data (such as SLATE, SCENE, TAKE, and Camera/Sound Filenames). So even though MovieSlate saves a huge amount of data to its shot log History for each shot, you generally change a very small amount of data from shot to shot. Note that you can always correct a shot’s incorrect or missing data later from the History screen.

Choose your camera’s frame rate by tapping the FPS field. Note that choosing Custom (text only) does not actually change the rate at which the timecode is displayed; it merely changes the text that appears in the slate's FPS field.

Set the Timecode by tapping the timecode display, and set timecode values using the Keypad, or sync to an external timecode source.

Photograph your MovieSlate by holding it up to the motion picture camera, thus allowing it to be photographed as part of the scene.

Tap the clapper sticks to start a shot— simultaneously saving it’s data and the timecode to MovieSlate’s shot log History. MovieSlate then goes into a “shot in progress” mode, and presents tools for taking notes during the shot. For more details, please read the “Starting a Shot” section of this User Guide.

When the scene ends (the Director calls “cut”), tap the slate’s End Shot button. This saves the ending timecode and your notes to the shot in MovieSlate’s shot log History. For more details, please read the “Starting a Shot” section of this User Guide.

Export History Reports. At the end of the day, export your shot log reports from the History screen.

The Data-Only MovieSlate workflow

If you’re not interested in logging timecode start/end points, you can use MovieSlate’s Data-Only workflow. Follow steps 1 - 2 above, then follow these additional steps:

Tap the Log Shot button. This saves all the shot info (excluding timecode start/end) to MovieSlate’s Shot Log History.

The Import History, then Slate workflow

Perhaps you prefer to prepare all shot data on a computer, import that data into MovieSlate, and use it to slate each shot— capturing/saving timecode, notes, and GPS location information in real time. Here’s how:

MovieSlate Projects Template.csv - to create a list of projects to import

MovieSlate History Template.csv - to create a list of shots to import

Edit the Spreadsheets. Do not edit the top three rows, and add your data to the other rows. It is OK to delete any column except the first one (Production).

Export the Spreadsheets as CSV Files. The files must be named exactly like the first row in each spreadsheet.

Email the CSV Files to MovieSlate. Attach the new CSV files to an email, and send the email to your iOS device.

Open the Email on your iOS device. Run the iOS Mail app, and view the email message you sent. Tap on a CSV attachment icon that appears near the bottom of the email (start with the MovieSlate Projects.csv file). A spreadsheet-like view of the attachment appears. Tap the action button (shown at right). A menu appears. Tap the Open with MovieSlate option. MovieSlate will open and import your data.

To Slate the Imported History

Load a Shot’s Data. Go to History > Shot Details and tap the slate button (shown at right), then tap the Copy to Slate, then Delete button to load the shot’s data into the Slate, Camera, and Sound Dept screens. The existing shot is immediately deleted from History, but will be saved as a new shot once you tap the clapper sticks to start a new shot (the next step).

Important! Start a New Shot by tapping the clapper sticks (or the Roll Sound button on the Sound Dept screen).

Optional Set your Prefs. Choose what should happen every time the Copy to Slate, then Delete button is tapped. Do this from MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > History Data Import > Copy-to-Slate, and then.

SCENE - which scene of the script is being shot. Trailing letters generally denote which setup is being shot for the scene. A new setup happens whenever anything major changes during the shot (such as a new camera angle). Tap the keypad’s “R/S” key to insert/remove a leading “R” to denote a scene that has been Reshot sometime after principal photography has wrapped.

TAKE - how many times the current scene has been shot. Several keypad keys will insert/remove leading/trailing letters: a leading “FT” denotes a False Take; a trailing “P/U” denotes a Pick Up shot; and a trailing “SER” indicates to post production that a single shot actually includes a Series of takes.

PROD - the Production (or Project) title. In MovieSlate, every shot must belong to a Project. Note that MovieSlate won’t let you “start a shot” until you’ve entered values for PROD, ROLL, SCENE, TAKE, UNIT, DEPT, LOGGER (although SCENE and TAKE are optional for MultiCam shots).

CDL - a colorist’s “Look ID” as defined by Technicolor’s ASC CDL standard. Each Project can have its own unique set of color looks. To import ASC CDL data into MovieSlate, start by exporting a “.CCC” file from Technicolor’s Digital Printer Lights desktop application. Email the “.ccc” file to your iOS device. From the iOS Mail app, tap and hold your finger over the “.ccc” file icon in the email message, and choose “Open with MovieSlate”. MovieSlate will open, and prompt you to choose a Project into which the ASC CDL data should be imported. When a “MovieSlate XML” file is exported from the History screen, it contains all ASC CDL data.

FPS (Frames Per Second) - the frame rate at which timecode is displayed. This would normally be set to match your camera’s frame rate. In MovieSlate, all FPS rates are NDF (Non Drop Frame) unless marked as DF (Drop Frame). 29.97 DF, 30 DF, and 59.94 DF rates are used to keep timecode in sync with wall clock time. Note that choosing Custom (text only) does not actually change the rate at which the timecode is displayed; it merely changes the text that appears in the slate's FPS field. When Custom is chosen, a menu of snippets from the FPS Snippets Group is displayed (if it exists). Otherwise, the keyboard will appear after choosing Custom.

DIR & DP - the Director’s name, and Director of Photography’s name. When editing the DIR or DP fields with the keyboard, long-tap the field to summon the Edit menu, then choose Contacts to summon the Address Book from which a person’s name can be chosen.

DATE - the date the shot was recorded.

CAM - which Camera(s) MovieSlate is recording shot log History data for. When a MultiCam shot is in progress, this field displays a MultiCam icon and cannot be edited.

INT/EXT/NITE/MOS - general shot descriptors. INT/EXT indicate that the shot was photographed as an Interior or Exterior. MORN/NOON/DAY/EVE/NITE indicates the time of day. Choose AUTOMATIC to always display one of these values based upon the actual time of day. MOS appears on a slate when a scene is filmed without sound (we’ve heard many fascinating explanations of the term’s origins). You can choose to honor a tradition of leaving the clapper sticks in a vertical position for MOS shots from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > Clapperstick Vertical for MOS. Or choose to display a hard-to-miss MOS label over the clappersticks from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > Clapperstick Label for MOS.

TITLE - an optional title for the shot. If present, the TITLE appears in the History screen’s scrolling list of shots.

DATA1 through DATA6 - can be anything you like. Again, you can change a field’s label by tapping on it. These fields can be viewed by swiping the clapper sticks and/or timecode display left/right.

CHANGING SLATE FIELDS

The Slate tab can be customized by changing many of its fields. For example, tap the CDL field's label. A menu appears with these choices:

Choose a Field - from a menu of data fields; even those from the Camera and Sound Dept tabs. For example, choosing UNIT would replace the CDL field with the UNIT field's label and data.

Edit Field Label - changes the field's displayed label, but not the data field associated with it. For example, changing the CDL field's label to UNIT will not cause the current UNIT field data to display in the CDL field's box.

Forget Field Choice - clears the associated data field, resulting in an empty FIELD box. Tap on the FIELD box again to choose an associated data field.

Several sections of the MovieSlate tab can slide left/right to reveal additional fields which can be changed. Sliding field panels include: clappersticks, timecode, SLATE-ROLL-SCENE-TAKE, PROD-DIR-DP, and CDL-INT/EXT/NITE/MOS.

To slide a field panel: swipe your finger horizontally over these sections to reveal additional data fields and controls. For details, see the Sliding Field Panels section of this User Guide.

The clapper sticks appear at the top of the MovieSlate tab's screen. You can customize the appearance of the clapper and slate from MovieSlate’s Settings > Appearance.

By default, tapping the clapper sticks will “start a shot”— saving all slate data and the current timecode to MovieSlate’s shot log History (if the PROD, ROLL, SCENE, TAKE fields are not empty). Note that you can choose not to save shots to History from MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > Save History button. When using the optional MultiCam feature and a MultiCam shot is in progress, the clapper sticks do not start shots, but instead adds a timecode-stamped "clapperstick" note to the MultiCam master shot.

Clap External Clappersticks - for use with an external clapper stick case such as ikan’s T-Slate. Shortly after the external sticks clap, MovieSlate’s clap detection software triggers the shot, saving it to History. In this mode, a Detect External Claps button appears over the onscreen clapper sticks. Tap the button to enable external clap detection prior to each shot. After enabling detection, two additional buttons appear: Detect Motion and Detect Sound. You can tap those buttons to enable/disable that form of clap detection. When motion and sound are both enabled, detection is quite good. However, you may experience false positives in some locations as the clap detection software is experimental and will be improved in later MovieSlate releases. To help prevent false-positives, clap detection is auto-disabled when the shot starts. During a shot, MovieSlate’s In-Progress screen contains a False Take button to quickly undo any false positives. Note that this feature is not compatible with Music Video mode.

When Using External Clappersticks, these additional settings come into play:

Arm Before Each Shot - helps reduce false positives by showing a Detect External Claps button on MovieSlate’s clappersticks— which must be tapped to arm external clapperstick detection before each shot.

A “hinge” button appears on the left or right side of the clapper sticks. You can customize the location and appearance of the hinge from MovieSlate’s Settings > Appearance > Clapper Hinge. You can configure its behavior from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Clapper Hinge.

Here are the possible actions when the hinge button is tapped:

Does Nothing - the button is just decoration, and performs no action.

Starts Shot - immediately starts the shot. When a MultiCam shot is in progress: instead of starting a shot, a time-stamped “clapperstick” note is added to the MultiCam master shot.

Tap Anywhere - a tap on the hinge “arms” the slate. Then tap the slate anywhere else to actually start the shot.

Simulates Denecke Sticks - when the hinge is tapped, the sticks open, and the Before Clap credits animation is shown in a loop below the timecode— as if the physical sticks had opened on a synced Denecke TS-TCB slate. Tap the hinge to hide the TS-TCB display and close the sticks (without actually starting a shot).

Locks Things - displays a list of items which can be simultaneously locked:

Locks Rotation - prevents the screen from automatically rotating when your iOS device is rotated. You can also lock and unlock screen rotation by swiping up from the bottom of the screen, and tapping the orientation lock button (with the circle-arrow icon). The system-wide rotation lock supercedes MovieSlate's rotation lock.

In the center of the slate is a digital display showing elapsed timecode (hours : minutes : seconds : frames). When FPS is set to a DF (Drop Frame) rate, the timecode display’s last colon becomes a semi-colon.
To configure the timecode, tap the center of the timecode display, and the Keypad appears.

Tap the wide “01:00:00:00” button to quickly set the timecode to the last manually jammed value (which actually appears on the button in place of 01:00:00:00). Note that this is the same timecode value used to automatically reset timecode when starting a shot (when MovieSlate Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots Start > Reset Timecode on Clap is checked).

Tap the red button to clear the timecode display to all zeroes.

Tap the “Clock” button to use Wall Clock Time— which is not always the same as timecode. This button is inappropriate for use with 23.976, 29.97, and 59.98 FPS because timecode at those NDF (Non Drop Frame) rates run 0.1% (0.001) slower than wall clock time; drifting away from clock time by 3.59 seconds every hour. When you attempt to use those incompatible rates with clock time, MovieSlate will warn you (but not prevent you from doing so). You can, however, avoid drift by using DF (Drop Frame) rates which are designed to keep timecode and wall clock time in sync.

Tap the pause/play button (lower left corner) to stop/start the timecode. In clock mode, this simply pauses the timecode animation.

Tap the blue “Done” button to accept your changes and close the Keypad.

Tap the NO Timecode button to enter Data-Only mode and save shots to MovieSlate’s Shot Log History sans start/end timecode.

Tap the SYNC button, then choose “Sync to Song” to sync timecode to a song, and then see the Music Video screen-- where song start/end points can be set.

Tap the SYNC button (when PRO Features are enabled) to send or receive timecode and/or data to other MovieSlates via WiFi. Choose exactly which sync data the receiving MovieSlate accepts from MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Sync > Receive Data. Via WiFi, you can also sync timecode with a Denecke TS-TCB slate, or Timecode Systems’ (TCS) Hubs such as the :pulse, :wave, and :buddy master. Via headphone jack audio, you can also send LTC timecode to, and receive LTC timecode from compatible cameras, sound recorders, timecode generators, and even other MovieSlate apps.

Several sections of the MovieSlate tab's screen can be scrolled left/right. Swipe your finger horizontally over these sections to reveal additional data fields and controls.

You can prevent these panels from sliding from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Clapper Hinge > Locks Things, then tapping on the clapperstick’s hinge.

PAGE SCROLL DOTS

At the bottom of most sliding field panels are a row of small, outlined dots (see example below). Each dot represents a “page”. A solid dot represents the current page.

CDL / INT-EXT-NITE-MOS / FILE

Swipe the CDL & INT-EXT-NITE-MOS section to the left to reveal the camera file field. Swipe back to the right to reveal the the other set of fields.

SLATE / ROLL / SCENE / TAKE

Swipe the SLATE / ROLL / SCENE / TAKE section to the left to reveal three customizable fields; and left again to reveal two more customizable fields. By default, the customizable are set to ROLL / SCENE / TAKE and SCENE / TAKE. Tap on a customizable field’s label to choose a different associated field.

PROD / DIR / DP

Swipe left once to reveal a blank space for a Production Graphic which is displayed on the slate (and appears at the top of HTML reports: Formatted HTML, and Sound Report). Tap the blank space to choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. The graphic will then appear momentarily. Tap the production graphic to choose one of these actions:

Scale to Fit - uses the entire graphic without cropping it

Scale to Fill - fills the blank space with the graphic, cropping if needed

Choose - replace the current graphic with a different graphic

Clear - remove the graphic from the blank space

Swipe the graphic to the left to reveal three unassigned FIELD boxes. Tap on a FIELD box to choose its associated data field.

Swipe to the right twice to return to the PROD, DIR, and DP fields

TIMECODE DISPLAY

Swipe right to reveal additional, customizable data fields.

Swipe left to reveal the UBITS (User Bits) display. User Bits are static data sent/received along with timecode via WiFi and the headphone jack (when the optional Timecode Sync plugin is enabled). User Bits data traditionally consists of codes, dates, tape reel numbers, or other organizational information. Tap the User Bits display to edit each hexadecimal digit using the Keypad. Tap the Keypad’s MDY button to enter the current Date in Month-Day-Year format. Tap it again to enter Day-Month-Year. Tap it again to enter Year-Month-Day. Once User Bits have been set to Date, they will always reflect the current date.

Swipe left again to reveal additional, customizable data fields.

CLAPPER STICKS

Swipe right once or twice to reveal additional, customizable data fields: TITLE and DATA1.

Swipe left (twice on iPhone and iPod touch) to reveal buttons for displaying color, grayscale, and focus charts— which can be useful to your camera operator when adjusting white balance or setting lens focus. You can configure the content for these charts from MovieSlate’s Settings > Appearance, then Color Chart, Gray Card, Focus Chart.

Swipe left (once) to reveal buttons for creating new text/audio/photo notes for the previous or next shot. You can determine which from MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > Save Clapper Notes.

Camera - create a picture note by taking a new photo (from iOS devices with cameras), or choosing an existing picture from the iOS Camera Roll or Photo Library (useful for importing sketches created by iOS drawing apps).

When shooting interviews, notes are a useful way to document what remarkable thing was said, and when. You can enter text from the keyboard, and quickly build notes from Snippet phrases. Customize your snippets from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets.

A set of “pre-roll” beeps can be heard as an audio on-set warning that the shot is about to start. You can set the number of beeps, the interval between beeps, and the pre-roll duration from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior. If you have chosen a Music Video song, beeps may not be heard when the music starts playing. Music playback begins at the song’s Start point minus the pre-roll duration you have set.

If you’ve chosen a Music Video song, the song will start playing (at the song’s Start point minus pre-roll duration). You can add a extra seconds of silence before playback begins from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Song Delay.

The clapper sticks close, making a “clap” sound. You can set this sound from MovieSlate’s Settings > Slate Behavior > Clapper Sound. You can enable/disable all sound effects from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > Play Sound Effects.

The timecode can be reset to the most recent value you entered using the Keypad. You can enable/disable this feature from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots Start > Reset Timecode on Clap.

The timecode can be shown if it was not already visible. You can enable/disable this feature from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots Start > Show Timecode on Clap.

The User Bits can be shown briefly. You can enable/disable this feature from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots Start > Flash User Bits on Clap.

A Credits “Before Clap” or “After Clap” animation can appear— displaying individual slate and production field values full screen for an instant so they can be photographed by the motion picture camera. This visual data can be useful when viewed frame-by-frame in a post-production editing suite. MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Show Credits:Sticks Open;Sticks Clap;Shot Ends determine:

Duration of each credit (in seconds or frames) - tap each row’s number button

When/If Credits Appear - tap each row’s ON/OFF switch

Credit Fields to Display - tap each row itself to choose the fields

Timecode, Slate, and Production data are saved as a new shot to MovieSlate’s shot log History. You can enable/disable this from MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > Save History button. If a MultiCam shot is in progress, a timecode-stamped “clappersticks” note is added to the MultiCam master shot, instead of starting a new shot.

A red “REC” badge appears (when a MultiCam shot is not in progress) on the MovieSlate tab bar icon, indicating that a shot is in progress. A similar red badge appears on MovieSlate’s application icon.

The Shot In Progress screen appears - when a MultiCam shot is not in progress, and MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > Save History button is ON.

MovieSlate can speak selected credits or data fields. - You can select the voice, speed, pitch, and which fields are spoken when the MovieSlate’s Settings > Slate Behavior > Speak Credits > Speak Before Clap button is ON.

After the shot starts, this screen appears (when MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > Save History button is ON). The screen contains several items:

Un/Lock button - locks or unlocks the screen’s auto-rotation. Note that this button does not override the iOS system’s orientation lock.

Location button (has a compass arrow icon) - uses the iOS device’s GPS radio (and/or WiFi and cellular towers) to locate the device’s current geographical location, look up the nearest address, and save all that Location information in MovieSlate’s shot log History. It can take up to a minute to obtain new map coordinates (latitude/longitude). An internet connection is required to lookup street address nearest to the map coordinates. You can have MovieSlate automatically refresh map coordinates each time a shot is started by enabling the Find & Save Locations and Refresh on Each Shot buttons from MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History, then running the Settings app and enabling “Location Services” for MovieSlate. Note that frequent map coordinate refreshing can quickly drain your iOS device’s battery.

TITLE field - an optional title for the shot. If present, the TITLE appears in the History screen’s scrolling list of shots.

Timecode display - used for reference only. Timecode values cannot be changed while a shot is in progress.

Note, Microphone, Camera buttons - tap these buttons to create new text/audio/photo notes for the current shot:

Camera - create a picture note by taking a new photo (from iOS devices with cameras), or choosing an existing picture from the iOS Camera Roll or Photo Library (useful for importing sketches created by iOS drawing apps). When the Video tab is connected to a Teradek Cube, you can also grab a still from the streaming video.

When shooting interviews, notes are a useful way to document what remarkable thing was said, and when. You can enter text from the keyboard, and quickly build notes from Snippet phrases. Customize your snippets from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets.

Picture Quality and Sound Quality★★★★★Star Ratings - tap one of the five dots to set a star rating for the current shot’s picture and/or sound quality. Star ratings are saved with the shot’s other data in MovieSlate’s shot log History. To clear a star rating, tap on any star and drag your finger to the left until no stars appear.

Circle

Circle Take button - mark the shot as a good take in the MovieSlate shot log History— to be “printed” (processed by the film laboratory). Circles appear in MovieSlate’s History Reports. When a take is completed, the director yells, "Cut" and if the director wants the take converted to dailies, the director will also yell, "Print". Once the director yells, "Cut! Print!", the script supervisor, the camera assistant, and the Sound Mixer circle the take number on their log sheets.

SS

Second Sticks button - immediately ends and deletes the shot as though it never happened (so you can “do over”).

FT

False Take button - immediately ends the shot. The shot that was in progress can be automatically deleted from MovieSlate’s shot log History, or its TAKE field can be prefixed with “FT”. The Shot In Progress screen is closed, and certain fields are automatically incremented. These behaviors are set in MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > On False Takes. You can also mark false takes from the History details screen by tapping on a shot’s TAKE field, then the keypad’s FT button.

End Shot

End the Shot button - saves an ending timecode to the current shot in MovieSlate’s shot log History, then closes the Shot In Progress screen. If MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots End > Confirm End the Shot is ON, then you are prompted to confirm that you want to end the shot:

No - do not end the shot.

Yes - end the shot.

Yes, and stop asking - end the shot, and stop displaying the confirmation.

To end a shot, tap the End the Shot button on the slate’s Shot In Progress screen.

When a shot ends, many things can happen:

You may be asked to confirm that you actually want to end the shot. This can be changed from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots End > Confirm End the Shot.

The shot’s ending timecode can be paused. This can be changed from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots End > Pause Timecode when Shot Ends.

The “Shot In Progress” screen can be closed immediately. This can be changed from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots End > Show Slate when Shot Ends.

A “Tail Sticks” Slate screen can be shown upside down, with the shot’s ending timecode. This can be changed from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots End > Show Tail Sticks.

The SLATE, TAKE, and Camera/Sound Filenames can be automatically incremented. This can be changed from MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > When Shots End.

The timecode is reset to a song’s Start Point when MovieSlate is in Music Video mode. For details, refer to the Music Video screen section of this User Guide.

A Credits “Shot Ends” animation can appear— displaying individual slate and production field values full screen for an instant so they can be photographed by the motion picture camera. This visual data can be useful when viewed frame-by-frame in a post-production editing suite. MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior > Show Credits:Sticks Open;Sticks Clap;Shot Ends determine:

Duration of each credit (in seconds or frames) - tap each row’s number button

When/If Credits Appear - tap each row’s ON/OFF switch

Credit Fields to Display - tap each row itself to choose the fields

MovieSlate can speak selected credits or data fields - when you end your shot. You can select the voice, speed, pitch, and which fields are spoken when the MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Speak Credits > Speak After Shot button is ON.

Use the Video screen to connect with Teradek Cube and Teradek Clip encoders over WiFi, and monitor their streamed video— fullscreen, with an optional timecode/info overlay. Once connected to a Cube or Clip, video can also be viewed from MovieSlate’s Notes screen (on iPads), and screen capture stills can be saved with notes to MovieSlate’s shot log History.

CONNECTING TO A TERADEK ENCODER

Configure the Network - from the Settings app, tap the WiFi icon, and choose the network that the Teradek Encoder is using.

Search for Teradek Encoder - from MovieSlate, tap the Video tab, then the Connect button in the upper right corner of the Video screen. A list of Encoders will appear.

Choose a Teradek Encoder - from the list. The video will appear full screen.

WATCHING VIDEO - FULL SCREEN

Full Screen Video - can be seen from the Video tab after connecting to a Teradek Encoder video source (as described above).

Show/Hide Encoder Info + Timecode - by tapping the round Info button at the top right corner of the video. On iPhone: tap once to display running timecode; tap again to display Encoder info; tap again to hide the displays. On iPad: tap to toggle the timecode and Encoder info displays.

Capture a Still - of the video to an image note by tapping the Save Image Note button. Configure what should happen next from MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > After Saving Images:

Do Nothing - saves the note, and briefly displays a confirmation message.

Edit Image - displays the image editor for adding annotations. Note images can also be edited from the History tab.

Add Text - displays the note editor for typing accompanying notes. Note text can also be edited from the History tab.

Stop Video Streaming - by tapping the Done button. iPad users: streaming video can be seen in the Notes editor until this Done button is tapped.

WATCHING VIDEO + TAKING NOTES (IPAD ONLY)

Connect to a Teradek Encoder source - as described above. Do not tap the Done button from the full screen video viewer on the Video tab— or else the video won’t be available in the Notes editor.

Create a Text Note - from the MultiCam tab. Or from the MovieSlate tab:

During a Shot - by tapping the Note button.

Before/After a Shot - by sliding the clappersticks to the left, and tapping the Note button.

Video Appears - in the upper right corner of the Note Editor screen. While taking MultiCam notes, the video can be temporarily hidden by scrolling it upward, to reveal more of the camera list.

Zoom Video Display - by double-tapping the video, or by pinching the video with two fingers.

Show/Hide Encoder Info + Source - by tapping the round Info button at the top right corner of the video. Choose a new Teradek Encoder source by tapping the Source button at the top of the video.

Save a Still - of the video to the note by tapping the Camera button. Afterwards, the streaming video viewer is replaced by a thumbnail of the still image that is now attached to the note being edited. Tap the New Note button to start a new note and again view the streaming video.

Stop Video Streaming - by tapping the Done button from the full screen video viewer on the Video tab.

MovieSlate can help automate Music Video shoots by playing back a portion of a song during a take. Use the Music Video screen to choose a song from your iPod library for playback. MovieSlate automatically syncs its timecode with your song, and starts/stops the music playback when the shot starts/stops.

A MUSIC VIDEO WORKFLOW

Prepare your song(s) - as an iPod-compatible audio file (with one of these filename extensions: .mp3, .aac, .aif, .wav). If you enabled the MovieSlate Timecode Sync PRO feature and plan to send timecode data from MovieSlate via the headphone jack, then we recommend mixing your songs to monaural, and silencing one of the stereo channels on each song. You can then choose to have the timecode audio sent on the other stereo channel. See MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Sync > Send Timecode Audio.

Add your song(s) to the iTunes library - run iTunes on your computer, and drag your song from the desktop to iTunes.

Sync your song(s) to your iOS device. Cable-connect your iOS device to your computer. Make sure that both your song(s) and the MovieSlate app are set to sync with your iOS device. Then click the Sync button.

Open MovieSlate’s “Music Video” screen from the MovieSlate tab/screen by tapping the timecode display, tapping the keypad’s SYNC button, and choosing “Sync to Song”. On iPhone/iPod touch, you can alternately tap the Music Video tab at the bottom of the screen instead (you may have to tap the More tab first).

Choose a Song - by tapping the Choose Song button in MovieSlate’s Music Video screen. Please note that iTunes Match tracks must already be downloaded to your device before MovieSlate allows you to select them for use in Music Video Mode. Use the built-in Music app and tap the cloud download icon to download the song into the device’s iTunes Library.

Set Start/End points - by dragging the start/end sliders in MovieSlate’s Music Video screen. During a shot, MovieSlate plays the song back from the Start point, and automatically stops the shot and the song playback when the End point is reached. The Music Video screen’s timecode display updates as you drag the active slider (which is blue). For very precise control of Start/End points, tap the Music Video screen’s timecode display, and enter timecode digits using the keypad.

Setting Marker points - set multiple markers for your music track on the Music Video screen. Once you select a song you can set a Marker by moving the playhead along the slider or tap the Mark button as the song plays. Slim tickmarks will be created along the playback slider as you mark the track. Tap the Markers button to view all the markers you have set for the track. As you tap on each marker the playhead will move to the timecode index indicated by the marker. Double-tapping a marker in the list will set the playhead to the timecode index and then close the Markers list.

While the Markers list is visible, tap the blue (i) button to edit its title or adjust the timecode index by the step amount visible in the "-/+ STEPS BY" field. When you are done editing a marker tap the Done button or tap on another marker and your edits will be saved.

Return to the slate view. On iPhone/iPod touch, tap the MovieSlate button in the tab bar. On iPad, tap the Music Video screen’s Done button.

Using Marker points. When MovieSlate is synced to a song, tap the timecode display on the MovieSlate tab and tap Edit Music Sync. Tap the Markers button to view the markers set for the current track, and tap a marker to set the playhead to the given timecode index. Tap the Done button in the upper-left of the Music Video screen. At the top of the Slate’s timecode display you should see your marker title in green text along with a stopwatch that will begin to advance once you start your shot.

Start the Shot. MovieSlate plays the chosen song back from the Start point, and automatically stops the shot and the song playback when the End point is reached. Please refer to the Starting a Shot section of this User Guide— which contains detailed information about pre-roll and song delay Settings that affect music playback.

When WiFi Syncing to iPads (using the optional Timecode Sync PRO feature), synced song information is sent to the receiving iPad. If the receiving iPad’s music library has the same song (with the identical song, artist, album name) as the sending iOS Device, then the music will play on both devices when the shot starts.

End the Shot. The slate’s timecode is immediately reset to the song’s Start point.

Start a new Take. MovieSlate continues to use the same song Start/End points.

Start a new Scene by editing the song’s Start/End points. Handy trick: when you drag the Start point slider past the End point slider, the old End point becomes the new Start point.

Exit Music Video mode by clearing the song. On iPhone and iPod touch, go to the Music Video screen, and tap the Choose Song button, then the red Clear Song button. On iPad, go to the MovieSlate screen, tap the timecode display, then tap the red Stop Music Sync button.

The Camera screen contains optional slate data fields that are saved with each shot to MovieSlate’s shot log History— and are often used in MovieSlate’s leader/end credit roll animations (which appear when photographing the slate at the start and end of a shot).

With the Camera Control PRO Feature enabled, tap the Connect to Camera button at the top of this screen to connect to, and remotely control a camera. Once connected, additional buttons will appear to control the synced camera’s recording, timecode, userbits, and other features. Many of this screen’s fields are synced to the camera (and appear with green text); changing field values in MovieSlate will also change corresponding settings on the synced camera.

On iPhone/iPod touch, you may have to tap the More tab to see the Camera tab.

Enter camera data by tapping on a field to edit it:

Camera Filename - many cameras save footage to a computer data file instead of a video tape or film roll. MovieSlate can log each shot’s filename for post-production use. Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, and Avid Media Composer use filenames to link logged meta data with media, so it is important to enter accurate data into the Filename field. To make this easy, MovieSlate supports many automated filenaming schemes (called filename input styles). When a filename field is tapped, a Filename Editor may, or may not appear. Many filename input styles automatically build filenames using static text, auto-incrementing numbers, and data from other fields— and so often require little or no user input because they are automatically updated each time a shot ends. Select, edit, and create filename input styles from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields > Camera > File.

Resolution - the size (in pixels) of a single movie frame. An “i” or “p” suffix indicates whether the movie is interlaced or progressive. The Resolution field is needed when exporting History Shot Log data to Final Cut Pro X XML format.

Compression - used with some cameras (such as RED) which have a file compression setting.

FPS & Sensor FPS - the FPS field on this screen has the same meaning as on the Slate screen, and can be thought of as "Project FPS". Some cameras that shoot raw digital format footage (such as RED and ARRI) also have a Sensor FPS setting.

Shutter Speed/Angle - the number of seconds a camera’s shutter is open (exposure). When this field’s input style is set to Keypad (ABC) MovieSlate automatically inserts a leading “1/” for you because most exposures are measured in fractional seconds. When this field’s input style is set to Keypad (ABC°) MovieSlate automatically appends a degrees symbol after the shutter angle.

Aperture(F-stops & T-numbers) - the size of a camera lens opening. MovieSlate automatically inserts a leading “F-” or “T-” for you. When editing this field, the Keypad has a plus and minus button which increment/decrement in third and half stop intervals.

ISO Speed - the measure of a photographic media’s sensitivity to light.

HDR - used with some cameras (such as RED) which have a High Dynamic Range setting.

Distance to Subject (Focus Distance) - is how far away the camera is to the subject being photographed. When editing this field with the Keypad, there are (') and (") buttons for separating feet from inches.

Camera Height - can be entered as literal numerals (ie: inches), or free form text (ie: “eye level”). When editing this field with the Keypad, there are (') and (") buttons for separating feet from inches.

CAM (Camera ID) - a letter from A to Z used to identify a camera on set. When logging with the MultiCam plugin, every camera has a unique Camera ID.

Camera Color - some productions identify cameras on set by sticking a colored piece of tape the camera. Use this field to log a camera’s color.

Camera Angle - can be entered as literal numerals (ie: 60°), or free form text (ie: “low angle”). When this field’s input style is set to Keypad (ABC°) MovieSlate automatically appends a degrees symbol after the camera angle.

Camera Operator - the name of the person operating the camera.

Unit - the unit this camera is part of. Many productions have various units shooting simultaneously, such as first unit, second unit, or effects unit.

Lens - the lens used for this shot (free form text such as “wide angle”).

Run MovieSlate, and ensure that the PRO Features subscription is enabled (from MovieSlate’s Settings > MovieSlate Store).

From the Camera tab, tap the Connect to Camera button. The app displays a list of cameras found on the network; tap one of them. Once connected, the Camera tab’s screen refreshes to display timecode and many other camera settings and indicators.

To Set Camera UserBits - slide the timecode display to the left, revealing the userbits display. Tap on the userbits display.

MULTICAM CAMERA CONTROL

MovieSlate’s MultiCam feature can be used to remotely control multiple synced cameras:

To Connect to Cameras - tap the MultiCam tab’s Connect to Cameras button, select one or more cameras from the list, then tap the Done button.

To Control Cameras - after the camera(s) connect, tap the Start Logging button to enter the notes/logging screen. On the iPad, the notes appear on the left side of the screen, and the cameras on the right. On the iPhone, tap the Cameras button to see the cameras list. A SYNCED badge appears to the right of the connected cameras.

To Start/Stop Recording - for a single camera: tap the round button to the left of its roll/filename.

To Start/Stop Recording - for all synced cameras: tap the round button in the top (ALL) row.

To Edit Camera + Operator Names - tap the Edit button. While editing, additional "virtual" (unsynced) cameras can be shown/hidden. User Guide has more detailed information about the MultiCam Plugin and its tab/screens.

If you shoot reality or documentary productions, then you might be interested in an optional PRO Features subscription which includes a MultiCam Feature— the painless way to keep track of: who said what; which units and cameras captured the action; and which rolls and clip files contain the footage. MultiCam simultaneously logs data and notes for up to 26 cameras, and includes a dedicated MultiCam report.

At the start of the day, enter production data from the MultiCam Setup screen (visible when there’s no MultiCam shot in progress). Throughout the day, start/stop individual camera shots from the MultiCam Logging screen (visible when the Start Logging button is tapped). Both screens are accessed from the MultiCam tab.

MULTICAM SETUP SCREEN

Choose a Project. Tap the slate’s PROD (Production) field to create a new Project, or choose/edit/clone an existing Project. You must enter a Production name for each Project. All other Project fields are completely optional, and can appear in some of MovieSlate’s History Reports— including the header at the top of the MultiCam Report. With the optional Timecode Sync feature enabled, “Networked Projects” from other MovieSlates on the WiFi network will also appear after tapping PROD > Choose a Project.

Enter data into fields (as described previously). Most field data is persistent; only changing when you manually edit the data. MovieSlate can automatically update some data for you (such as the DATE), and auto-increment some data (such as SLATE, TAKE, and Camera Filenames). So even though MovieSlate saves a huge amount of data to the its shot log History for each shot, you generally change a very small amount of data from shot to shot. Note that you can always correct a shot’s incorrect or missing data later from the History screen. When MultiCam logging, the SLATE, SCENE, and TAKE fields are optional and can be left empty if your production does not use them.

Choose your cameras’ frame rate by tapping the FPS field. When MultiCam logging, all cameras use the same frame rate.

Set Timecode - tap the timecode display, and set timecode values using the Keypad, or sync to an external timecode source.

Connect to Cameras - by tapping the Connect to Cameras button at the top of this screen (with the Camera Control feature installed). A list appears with the names of cameras discovered on the WiFi network. Check/Uncheck a camera name in the list, then tap the Done button to start/end syncing. Note that each camera should have a unique camera letter (from A to Z) as MovieSlate will only connect to a single camera for each assigned letter.

Start Logging

Start Logging - tap the Start Logging button to start a MultiCam Master Shot and open the MultiCam Logging Screen. Master Shots contain all the notes associated with a MultiCam shoot— which can last many hours. Each individual camera shot (child shot) that you start/stop from the MultiCam Logging Screen will be grouped together within its master shot in MovieSlate’s History screen and MultiCam Reports.

End Logging - tap the End Logging button to end a MultiCam Master Shot and all the camera child shots in progress.

MULTICAM LOGGING SCREEN

Title a scene by entering text into the Shot Title field. The title is saved with each new child shot.

Enter a Camera Note by tapping the Note field. To enter a new note, tap the Next Note button. All notes are timecode-stamped and added to the MultiCam master shot.

Add a ★-Rating Note by dragging your finger over the Content Rating dots. When you lift your finger, a timecode-stamped star rating note is added to the MultiCam master shot.

CAMERAS LIST SCREEN

Enter Camera ROLL and Filename by tapping those fields on the Cameras List screen (seen by tapping the Cameras button on iPhone and iPod touch).

Start/End Camera Shots by tapping a round aperture/lens button on the left side of each camera’s row (which also starts/stops recording on synced cameras). The round button is red when the shot is in progress. You can start/stop all cameras (or synced cameras) by tapping the round aperture/lens button on the ALL row.

★-Rate Camera Shots while a camera shot is in progress by dragging your finger over the five dots on a camera’s row. When you lift your finger, a timecode-stamped star rating note is added to that camera’s shot.

Edit the number of Cameras by tapping the Edit button above the Cameras list. Drag the slider to use between 1 and 26 cameras.

Edit Camera Colors by tapping the Edit button above the Cameras list. Tap the square color wheel icon to assign a color to a camera (many productions identify cameras by colors as well as letters A through Z). Tap the square color wheel icon on the ALL row to set or clear all camera colors.

Edit a Camera Name & Operator by tapping the Edit button above the Cameras list, then tapping a particular camera’s name and camera operator fields. After editing these fields, their new values are sent back to the camera (if synced).

SLATE SCREEN

Clappersticks do not start/stop shots while a MultiCam shot is in progress. Instead, when you tap the clappersticks, a timecode-stamped "clappersticks" note is added to the MultiCam master shot.

HISTORY SCREEN: REPORTS

MultiCam Report, At the end of the day’s shoot, select a Project or MultiCam shot from the History screen, then export a MultiCam Report. The HTML-based MultiCam Report contains timecode for all camera starts/stops, notes for all master and child shots, and camera roll/filename columns indicating when each camera was started/stopped.

Avid Report, At the end of the day’s shoot, select a Project or MultiCam shot from the History screen, then export an Avid Report consisting of a single ALE file and a collection of Locator files. The ALE file contains rows of shot meta data (rows prefixed with SEQ are MultiCam master shots, and rows prefixed with CLIP are camera child shots). Each Locator file contains notes for a single CLIP or SEQ. Since the MultiCam master shot contains most of the notes, you probably only need to import the SEQ Locator files, and not the CLIP Locator files. After receiving the exported files on your computer, run Media Composer, select a Bin window, select the menu: File > Import, and choose the exported MovieSlate Clips.ale file. Select the menu: Tools > Locators, then select the menu: File > Import Locators, and choose a MovieSlate Locators.txt file.

Each MultiCam mastershot can contain child shots for up to 26 cameras (labeled A through Z). While a MultiCam shot is in progress, any of the cameras may start/stop multiple times.

You enter camera data using the Cameras screen. On iPad, the Cameras appear on the right side of the MultiCam Logging screen. On iPhone and iPod touch, tap the Cameras button at the top of the MultiCam Logging screen to view the Cameras screen.

CAMERA ROW COMPONENTS

Each Camera row consists of these components:

Record button - a large, round button on the left side of each camera row. Tap the button to start or stop an individual camera’s shot. Tap the record button in the ALL row to start/stop all visible cameras, and start/stop recording of synced cameras (with the Camera Control feature enabled).

Camera Filename - many cameras save footage to a computer data file instead of a video tape or film roll. Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere, and Avid Media Composer use filenames to link logged meta data with media, so it is important to enter accurate data into the Filename field. To make this easy, MovieSlate supports many automated filenaming schemes (called filename input styles). When a filename field is tapped, a Filename Editor may, or may not appear. Many filename input styles automatically build filenames using static text, auto-incrementing numbers, and data from other fields— and so often require little or no user input because they are automatically updated each time a shot ends. Select, edit, and create filename input styles from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields > MultiCam.

★-Rate Camera Shots while a camera shot is in progress by dragging your finger over the five dots on a camera’s row. When you lift your finger, a timecode-stamped star rating note is added to that camera’s shot.

SETTING THE VISIBLE CAMERAS

Tap the Edit button above the Cameras List, then tap the checkbox on the right of each camera to show/hide that camera. Tap the checkbox in the ALL row to show/hide all cameras.

CHANGING CAMERA COLORS

In addition to identifying cameras by letters A through Z, many productions stick pieces of colored tape or paper to their cameras.

Edit Camera Colors by tapping the Edit button above the Cameras list. Tap the square color wheel icon to assign a color to a camera.

Set All Camera Colors by tapping the square color wheel icon on the ALL row. Then choose to clear all camera colors, or set them to a default collection of rainbow colors.

EDITING CAMERA NAMES & OPERATORS

Edit a Camera Name & Operator by tapping the Edit button above the Cameras list, then tapping a particular camera’s name and camera operator fields. After editing these fields, their new values are sent back to the camera (if synced).

MovieSlate can generate an HTML-based MultiCam Report that contains timecode for all camera starts/stops, notes for all master and child shots, and camera roll/filename columns indicating when each camera was started/stopped.

MULTICAM REPORT HEADER DATA

On the first page of every MultiCam Report is a header block that contains information about you and the project. To populate this data:

Enter your info. From MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports, tap My Info. Tap the blue plus button in the upper right corner of the My Info screen. Choose your contact card from the iOS Address Book to paste its data into My Info. Edit the pasted text as needed. Make sure the Include in Reports button is ON. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time— not each time you run a MultiCam Report. You can also add your own logo to the report via MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > My Logo

Enter project data. From the MultiCam Logging or MovieSlate screens, tap the PROD field, and choose Edit Project. Populate all the fields in the Edit Project screen. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time for each new project— not each time you run a MultiCam Report.

Choose a Production Graphic. From the MovieSlate screen, swipe left once to reveal a blank space for a production graphic— which is displayed on the slate (and appears at the top of HTML reports: Formatted HTML, Sound Report, and MultiCam Report). Tap the blank space to choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. The graphic will then appear momentarily.

SENDING MULTICAM REPORTS

To run a report, select a particular shot from the History screen. Tap the share button. From the menu, choose MultiCam Report and tap one of these menu choices:

This Project - includes all MultiCam master and child shots for the selected shot’s project.

Shots on Date - includes all MultiCam master and child shots for the selected shot’s date.

Your MultiCam Report is then created, and emailed to recipients (that you choose when the report is sent and/or from MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Email To).

VIEWING & PRINTING MULTICAM REPORTS

MovieSlate saves MultiCam Reports as HTML files that can be viewed using web browsers. For best results, we recommend viewing and printing MultiCam Reports from the Safari or Firefox browsers on a computer.

To view the MultiCam Report, run the browser, then choose Open from the browser’s File menu, and choose the MultiCam Report html file.

To print the MultiCam Report from the browser, click the Print this Report button that appears at the top left of the report. Follow the browser-specific instructions that appear. It is important to print MultiCam Reports in landscape format, or they will not paginate properly.

From the print options sheet that appears in Mac OS X, users can click the PDF button to save the paginated report as a PDF, or click the Print button to send it on to the printer.

A KeyClip is a keyword with an associated starting+ending timecode, used to match keywords with media clips. KeyClips log data becomes FCPX keyword ranges, markers, notes, and sequences.

THE KEYCLIPS WORKFLOW

1. KeyClips Logging. Tap on MovieSlate keywords to log what’s being filmed, and when. Once logging is complete, tap the share button to send the logged data to a Mac running macOS Yosemite (v10.10) or newer.

Use our free KeyClips app to import and match MovieSlate log data and FCPX clip data. After merging log+clip data, new fcpxml is created and sent to FCPX. Using a Mac, download the free KeyClips app from movie-slate.com/keyclips

ENABLING KEYCLIPS LOGGING

KeyClips Logging is part of an optional PRO Features subscription. You can subscribe to PRO Features from MovieSlate’s Settings > Movie★Slate Store.

Start Logging a KeyClip by tapping a keyword (Snippet phrase) in one of the first four lists. A checkmark then appears to the left of the keyword.

Stop Logging a KeyClip by tapping its checkmarked keyword. Then its checkmark vanishes.

Start & Auto-Stop a KeyClip by tapping its timer button— which is available for any keyword with a Post-Roll duration attribute— configured by editing the keyword’s Snippet. When the keyword’s timer icon or row is tapped, the keyword’s checkmark appears and a countdown text caption replaces the timer button. When the countdown reaches 0, the KeyClip stops and its checkmark and countdown caption vanish.

Stop All KeyClips in a List by tapping the red Stop button at the top of the list.

Stop All KeyClips in All Lists by tapping the red Stop All button at the top of the screen.

Log Favorite and Rejected KeyClips by tapping the FAVORITE/REJECT buttons. Tap one of the buttons again to stop Favorite/Reject clip logging.

TIMECODE, PRE-ROLL, POST-ROLL

Red Timecode is the synced timecode, and the ending timecode when manually stopping a keyword.

Green Timecode is the default starting timecode when creating a new keyword range.

Pre-Roll the Starting Timecode by selecting a seconds duration: 60 30 15 5 2 0. Pre-Rolling is a useful way to start logging a keyword range in the immediate past— since the logger’s recognition of an event often happens shortly after the event began. Assign custom Pre-Roll and/or Post-Roll values to a keyword by editing its Snippet.

KEYWORD LISTS & SNIPPETS

Pages containing the Keyword Lists can be scrolled by swiping left/right. Swipe up/down to scroll through a particular list’s keyword items. On iPad, the app’s tabbar can be hidden/shown by tapping the Tabs button at the top of the screen.

Keyword Lists are MovieSlate Snippet Groups which can also be managed from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets screen. Any Snippet Group can be used as a Keyword List.

Suggested List Categories are: Location, People, Activity, Topics and Markers. Keywords logged from the People list can be used by the KeyClips macOS app to auto-generate FCPX bottom-third titles containing a person’s name, and sequences of activities or topics for each person.

List Keywords - tap a List’s Name button and a menu appears with these options:

Choose List - displays a list of Snippet Groups from which to choose and assign as the List.

Create New List - displays a screen in which to enter a new Snippet Group title, then assigns the new Group as the List.

To Quickly Add Keywords to a List: tap the + button to the right of the list’s name. An Add Keywords screen appears where keyword phrases can be pasted or entered (one per line). Longer Keyword Snippet Phrases will word wrap to two lines when displayed in the lists.

Log a Marker Keyword by tapping a keyword in the MARKERS list. Marker notes are saved with a time duration of one frame.

Log Marker Phrases by tapping the + MARKER button. Then build a phrase by tapping one or more keywords from any of the keyword lists. Clear the phrase by tapping the red clear button. When done, tap the SAVE button and return to keyword logging.

Log Marker Notes by tapping the New Note button (pencil icon). MovieSlate’s full-screen Notes Editor appears with a keyboard to enter free-form notes, and upon dismissal the new Marker note is saved and the KeyClips Logging screen reappears.

EDITING KEYWORD LISTS

Tap the Edit button at the top-right of the KeyClips Logging screen. While in Edit mode:

Done replaces Edit button— tap to exit Edit mode.

Logging controls are inactive or hidden.

Rearrange or Show/Hide lists by tapping the List button.

Rearrange Snippets by tapping the Sort List button, or by dragging a keyword’s right

edge up/down.

Edit the List’s Title in the textfield above the list.

Default Accent Color - applies to all snippets in this list.

Delete a Snippet by tapping its red minus sign button.

Edit a Snippet by tapping its text.

EDITING KEYWORD SNIPPETS

Edit Keyword Snippets to override their default appearance and behavior:

KeyClip/Marker Text Color - tap this row to choose a color from a collection of swatches. Tap the rainbow button to choose a custom color. This option overrides the list’s Snippets Text Color option above. On the Logging screen, colored text can visually distinguish or group keywords.

KeyClip/Marker Pre-Roll - enter a non-zero value to override the Logging screen’s Default Pre-Roll setting for this keyword. When the KeyClip starts with a custom Pre-Roll, a “Pre-Roll: NN” message briefly appears over the keyword.

KeyClip Post-Roll - enter a non-zero number of seconds. On the Logging screen, a timer icon then appears to the right of a keyword. When the keyword’s timer icon or row is tapped, the keyword’s checkmark appears and a countdown text caption replaces the timer button. When the countdown reaches 0, the KeyClip stops and its checkmark and countdown caption vanish. While its countdown text caption is visible, a KeyClip can be manually stopped by tapping its row.

Link to Other Keywords (except Markers) - tap this row to start/stop other keywords (except Markers) when this keyword is tapped from one of the lists. Links can be used to start multiple keywords with a single tap. For instance, you could create a My Team keyword and tap it to start several people keywords that are linked to My Team. This can be useful when filming sporting events. Links can also be used to stop other keywords when one keyword is tapped. For instance, suppose you created keywords: Question and Answer. Link Answer to stop when Question starts. Link Question to stop when Answer is tapped. So when you tap either one of those keywords, the other will stop. This can be useful when filming interviews.

To add a new keyword link: tap the +Start, +Stop, or +Sync buttons, then choose a keyword from the list that appears.

To delete a keyword link: swipe left on its row, then tap its Delete button.

If you’re a Sound Mixer, then you might be interested in MovieSlate’s optional Sound Department feature— which makes it trivially easy to capture sound department log data and generate Sound Reports for use by post production.

You can enable the Sound Dept feature by subscribing to MovieSlate’s PRO Features. Learn more from MovieSlate’s Settings > MovieSlate Store.

THE “SOUND DEPT” SCREEN

Once the Sound Dept feature is enabled, a new Sound Dept tab button appears in MovieSlate’s tab bar at the bottom of the screen. Tap this button to view the Sound Dept screen.

The Sound Dept screen is normally used by Sound Mixers as an alternative to the MovieSlate screen. Swipe left/right on the block of Sound Dept fields to switch between a full layout and simplified layout. Of course, you can always enter additional data via the Camera and MovieSlate screens. Data from those screens will be saved to the MovieSlate shot log History along with the Sound Dept data.

Swipe left/right on the block of Sound Dept fields to switch between a full layout and simplified layout.

Here’s what each field on the Sound Dept screen is generally used for:

SLATE - often a unique ID that’s assigned to each shot. Many production companies label this field as SEG.

SROLL - the sound roll number.

SCENE - which scene of the script is being shot. Trailing letters generally denote which setup is being shot for the scene. A new setup happens whenever anything major changes during the shot (such as a new camera angle). A leading “R” denotes a SCENE that has been reshot sometime after principal photography has wrapped.

TAKE - how many times the current SCENE has been shot.

DATE - the date the shot was recorded.

FOLDR - the folder in which the sound file is saved on the primary digital sound recorder.

FILE1 and FILE2 - the name of the sound file(s) that are being saved on your digital sound recorder for this particular shot. Because many Sound Mixers use two sound recorders (a primary and backup), this screen provides two sound file fields. Sound filenames appear in the Sound Report (in each shot’s yellow NOTES / FILES column). MovieSlate supports many automated filenaming schemes (called filename input styles). When a filename field is tapped, a Filename Editor may, or may not appear. Many filename input styles automatically build filenames using static text, auto-incrementing numbers, and data from other fields— and so often require little or no user input because they are automatically updated each time a shot ends. Select, create, and edit filename input styles from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields > Sound.

PROD - the Production (or Project) title. In MovieSlate, every shot must belong to a Project. Note that MovieSlate won’t let you “start a shot” until you’ve entered values for PROD, ROLL, SCENE, TAKE. Tap the PROD field to create a new Project, or choose/edit/clone an existing Project. You must enter a Production name for each Project. All other Project fields are completely optional, and can appear in many of MovieSlate’s History Reports— including the header at the top of the Sound Report.

FPS (Frames Per Second) - the frame rate at which timecode is displayed. This would normally be set to match your camera’s frame rate. In MovieSlate, all FPS rates are NDF (Non Drop Frame) unless marked as DF (Drop Frame). 29.97 DF, 30 DF, and 59.94 DF rates are used to keep timecode in sync with wall clock time. Note that choosing Custom (text only) does not actually change the rate at which the timecode is displayed; it merely changes the text that appears in the slate's FPS field. When Custom is chosen, a menu of snippets from the FPS Snippets Group is displayed (if it exists). Otherwise, the keyboard will appear after choosing Custom.

TITLE - an optional title for the shot. If present, the TITLE appears in the History screen’s scrolling list of shots, and also in the Sound Report (in each shot’s yellow NOTES / FILES column).

NOTES - each can contain a single “Sound Mixer” note that you can create/edit by tapping this NOTES field. Additional notes can be added from the MovieSlate or History screens. All a shot’s notes appear in the Sound Report (in each shot’s yellow NOTES / FILES column).

UBITS (User Bits) - swipe the timecode display to the left to reveal the UBITS display. User Bits are static data sent/received along with timecode via WiFi and the headphone jack (when the optional Timecode Sync plugin is enabled). User Bits data traditionally consists of codes, dates, tape reel numbers, or other organizational information. Tap the User Bits display to edit each hexadecimal digit using the Keypad. Tap the Keypad’s MDY button to enter the current Date in Month-Day-Year format. Tap it again to enter Day-Month-Year. Tap it again to enter Year-Month-Day. Once User Bits have been set to Date, they will always reflect the current date.

Each shot can contain up to 32 sound tracks. Sound Track data is saved with each shot in MovieSlate’s shot log History.

You enter track data using the Sound Tracks screen. On iPad, the Sound Tracks appear on the right side of the Sound Dept screen. On iPhone and iPod touch, tap the Tracks button at the top of the screen to view the Sound Tracks screen.

SOUND TRACK COMPONENTS

Each Sound Track consists of these components:

Track Label/Color - vertical text such as T01. Track labels appear as colored column headers in Sound Reports. Tap the label to edit its text— or its color (see Setting Track Colors instructions below). You can set all the labels in one fell swoop from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields > Sound > Track Labels button (in the upper right corner). From there, you can choose numbered labels (T01 - T24) or lettered labels (L/R and A-V).

Microphone field - gold text that indicates which kind of microphone was used for the sound track. Tap on this field to edit its text. By default, the Snippets Chooser will appear with a list of “Mics” snippets to choose from. You can edit these snippets from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets. You can choose which snippet group will appear by default from MovieSlate’s Settings > Field Input Styles > Sound.

Sound Track Name field - white text that indicates what source (often an actor) was being recorded for this sound track. Tap this field to edit its text. By default, the Snippets Chooser will appear with a list of “Actors” snippets to choose from. You can edit these snippets from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets. You can choose which snippet group will appear by default from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields > Sound.

Enable button - a large, round button on the right side of the sound track. Tap the button to enable or disable a track. All sound track data is saved with each shot to MovieSlate’s shot log History. However, only enabled sound tracks appear in Sound Reports. To use redEnable buttons, go to MovieSlate’s Settings > Appearance > Red Arm-Track Buttons (at the very bottom of that screen).

EDITING & SETTING THE NUMBER OF TRACKS

Tap the Edit button above the Sound Tracks, then use the slider to set up to 32 tracks. As you adjust the slider, the bottom soundtrack row indicates the current number of tracks.

REARRANGING SOUND TRACKS

While editing the Sound Tracks, the track Enable buttons are replaced by buttons you can drag up and down to rearrange the order of the tracks. After rearranging, the track labels retain their original positions, but the track contents move to new positions.

SETTING TRACK COLORS

While editing the Sound Tracks, the Track Label buttons are replaced by Track Color buttons.

To Clear all Colors - tap the Color Clear button at the bottom of the screen (on the Sound Dept tab).

To Use Rainbow Colors - tap the Color Rainbow button at the bottom of the screen (on the Sound Dept tab).

Typically, Sound Mixers generate Sound Reports at the end of each day’s shoot. MovieSlate makes this really easy for you.

SOUND REPORT HEADER DATA

On the first page of every Sound Report is a header block that contains information about you and the project. To populate this data:

Enter your info. From MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports, tap My Info. Tap the blue plus button in the upper right corner of the My Info screen. Choose your contact card from the iOS Address Book to paste its data into My Info. Edit the pasted text as needed. Make sure the Include in Reports button is ON. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time— not each time you run a Sound Report. You can also add your own logo to the report via MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > My Logo

Enter project data. From the Sound Dept screen, tap the PROD field, and choose Edit Project. Populate all the fields in the Edit Project screen. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time for each new project— not each time you run a Sound Report.

Choose a Production Graphic. From the MovieSlate screen, swipe left once to reveal a blank space for a production graphic— which is displayed on the slate (and appears at the top of HTML reports: Formattted HTML, and Sound Report). Tap the blank space to choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. The graphic will then appear momentarily.

SENDING SOUND REPORTS

To run a report, select a particular shot from the History screen. Tap the share button. From the menu, choose Sound Report and tap one of these menu choices:

This Project - includes all shots for the selected shot’s project. When the project has multiple sound rolls, you can choose a specific roll or all rolls.

Shots on Date - includes all shots for the selected shot’s date.

This Sound Roll - includes all shots in the selected shot’s sound roll and project.

Your Sound Report is then created, and emailed to recipients (that you choose when the report is sent and/or from MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Email To).

VIEWING & PRINTING SOUND REPORTS

MovieSlate saves Sound Reports as HTML files that can be viewed using web browsers. For best results, we recommend viewing and printing Sound Reports from the Safari or Firefox browsers on a computer.

To view the Sound Report, run the browser, then choose Open from the browser’s File menu, and choose the Sound Report html file.

To print the Sound Report from the browser, click the Print this Report button that appears at the top left of the report. Follow the browser-specific instructions that appear. It is important to print Sound Reports in landscape format, or they will not paginate properly.

From the print options sheet that appears in Mac OS X, users can click the PDF button to save the paginated report as a PDF, or click the Print button to send it on to the printer.

Some people prefer to capture all meta-data on their sound recorders, and use MovieSlate to generate the final Sound Reports. MovieSlate can import CSV files that were generated by the Sound Devices 788T (firmware v2.15 or newer) and Zaxcom Deva recorders. Here are the instructions for that workflow...

Capture meta data on your sound recorder as you have traditionally done.

Export/Send the CSV log file to your iOS device. At the end of your shooting day, export the CSV file from your sound recorder (refer to the recorder’s documentation for instructions). Create a new email message, and attach the CSV file to the email. Send the email to your iOS device.

Create a Project in MovieSlate. Run the MovieSlate app, and create a new project into which the sound recorder’s shots will be imported.

Open the Email on your iOS device. Run the iOS Mail app, and view the email message you sent. Tap on the CSV attachment icon that appears near the bottom of the email. A spreadsheet-like view of the attachment appears. Tap the action button (with the curvy arrow in the upper right corner). A menu appears. Tap the “Open with MovieSlate” option.

Choose a Project. After choosing to open the CSV attachment with MovieSlate, the MovieSlate app will open and you’ll be prompted to choose a project into which the sound recorder’s shots will be imported.

Run a Sound Report. Go to MovieSlate’s History screen, select one of the shots you just imported, and tap the share button. A menu appears with report types— choose “Sound Report”.

Here are some setup and usage tips to help streamline your MovieSlate Sound Dept workflow...

Pre-configure “Mic” and “Actor” snippets. Start in MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets screen. Populate the “Mic” and “Actor” groups with the names of all the microphones and actors/characters you’ll need for your shoot. You might even consider creating several different “Actor” groups for use with different productions.

Assign “Snippets (Actor)” as the Input Style for a Sound Track Name field. From MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields > Sound, tap the Source field. Then choose Snippets (Actors) or one of the snippet groups you set for the current production.

Pre-populate Sound Tracks. From the Sound Tracks screen, enter Microphone and Sound Track Name values for each track. With a single tap, you can disable tracks that aren’t being used for a particular shot. You can also Edit the Sound Tracks, and rearrange the active tracks to be at the top of the list. This technique may be faster for you than constantly editing the text of each individual Sound Track.

Pre-configure “Sound Report” settings. Go to MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports. Set Report to Sound Report. Tap the Email To item and choose an email address by tapping the blue plus button (repeat to add multiple email addresses). You can also type or paste email addresses into this recipient list. Set the Attach Files and Compress Files to suit your preference. Tap the My Info item and enter your contact information (which will appear at the top of the Sound Report).

Choose Report Email Recipients & Contents. From MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Email To and Email BCC and Email Contents, you can choose who will receive a report, and what the email message should contain. These settings can be optionally configured on a per-project basis.

After subscribing to the Script Dept Pro Features, a Script Dept tab appears at the bottom of the screen.

Tap the Script Dept tab to display the Script Setup screen. Items on this screen need only be set once; at the start of each day; when changing projects; or when a script PDF is revised.

SETUP PROJECT DATA

Enter Logger Info which includes your Name, Department, Title, and Unit. Since this only needs to be done once, the Logger Info button in the upper left corner of the screen will immediately be replaced by the Share button (used for generating Script Reports at the end of the day). You can make additional Logger Info changes from MovieSlate Settings > Shot Log History > Logger Info.

Choose a Project when you start working a new project or series episode. Tap the PROD (Production) field to create a new Project, or choose/edit/clone an existing Project. You must enter a Production name for each Project. All other Project fields are completely optional, although they appear in some of MovieSlate’s History Reports. “Networked Projects” from other MovieSlates on the WiFi network will also appear after tapping PROD > Choose a Project.

Choose SingleCam or MultiCam to determine the type of tramlines to create when lining a script PDF. Configure tramline options from MovieSlate Settings > Script Dept.

Enter Director by tapping the DIR field. The director’s name appears at the top of each Script Report.

Set Timecode by tapping the timecode display. Manually enter timecode digits from the timecode keypad. Or tap the keypad’s SYNC button to sync to external timecode sources.

Choose the camera frame rate by tapping the FPS field. Note that choosing Custom (text only) does not actually change the rate at which the timecode is displayed; it merely changes the text that appears in the slate's FPS field.

SETUP SCRIPT INFO

Import a Script PDF - by creating an email with a PDF attachment, then sending it to your iOS device. Open the email from the iOS Mail app, long-tap the PDF attachment’s icon, and choose to open the PDF from MovieSlate (which imports the PDF into MovieSlate). Then run the MovieSlate app.

Choose a Script PDF - by tapping the Choose Script PDF button or the PDF field to display a list of PDFs that you’ve already imported from the iOS Mail app. Note that you can also delete unused PDFs from this list by tapping its Edit button.

Enter a Revision Number from the REV field to identify which version of the script you’re currently using. Each time you modify the PDF by adding or deleting pages (more on that later), MovieSlate will ask you to set a new REV number.

Enter Page and Scene Counts by tapping the PAGES and SCNES fields.

SETUP DAY INFO

Choose a Shoot Day - (starting with 1) by tapping the DAY field at the start of each day. Note that a single shoot day can actually span more than a single calendar date.

Choose a Shoot Day’s Start Date - by tapping the DATE field. In the screen that appears, choose Today to have MovieSlate automatically update this field for you each day.

Enter Call, Lunch, Dinner, and Wrap Times by tapping the CALL, LUNCH, DINNER fields which are used to create the Progress Report. Note that you can enter start and end times for LUNCH and DINNER.

Enter a List of Scheduled Scenes by tapping that field. Enter scenes separated by commas (like 1,2,3,4). Do not enter scene setups in this field (such as 2B), but instead enter just the scene number (such as 2). From MovieSlate Settings > Fields > Scene , you can choose from various scene formatting styles, and the Script Dept supports these Keypad styles: 123-123, 123.123, 123/123, 123abc, 123ABC.

Start Logging by tapping the Log + Mark Script button. The Script will appear (described in the next section).

Use the Script PDF Screen to markup (annotate) the script PDF, and to log data for reports.

Markup/Line the Script using annotation tools to create script tramlines, typed/handwritten/audio notes, pictures, and drawings that stick to the PDF itself. Most annotations can be selected, grouped, moved, stretched, erased, copied, and pasted. Tap on an annotation to select it, and inspect/change its properties including: color, opacity, line weight, typeface, and more.

Enter Data into Fields which MovieSlate saves (logs) for each take, and uses to later generate Script Reports. Most field data is persistent; you only need to alter the data when something changed on set. MovieSlate can automatically update some fields for you (such as the DATE), and auto-increment some data (such as SLATE, TAKE). So even though MovieSlate saves a huge amount of data to its shot log History for each shot, you generally change a very small amount of data from take to take.

Script Pages

Tap on a script page (but not an annotation) to reveal the entire page by hiding the toolbar (at top) and the tabbar (at bottom). Tap the page again to show the toolbar and tabbar.

Swipe your finger or stylus left/right to move to to the next/previous script page.

If inserting new script pages - create new email and attach a PDF containing the new pages. Send the email to your iOS device, open the email from the iOS Mail app, long-tap the PDF attachment’s icon, and choose to open the PDF from MovieSlate (which imports the PDF into MovieSlate), then...

To modify the current script - go to MovieSlate’s Script Dept tab, and tap the Log + Mark Script button. Tap the grid button to view thumbnails of all the current script pages. Tap the Edit button at the top of the screen. Select one or more existing pages— to indicate where the new pages will be inserted, and/or which existing pages to replace/delete. Tap the Actions button at the top of the screen, then choose whether to import, replace, or delete pages.

Script Toolbar (Screen Top)

Screen space permitting, the script toolbar contains some/all of these buttons (from right to left)...

Search - tap to search for script dialogue, a scene description, or character name.

Grid (in toolbar on iPad, and next to the script page number) - tap to view all the script pages from the Page Grid screen-- where you can quickly select a specific page, or add/delete/replace pages.

Bookmark - tap to un/mark the current page. From the Page Grid screen, you can tap the Bookmarks button to view just your bookmarked pages.

Take - tap to start/end takes. Read more about this in the Script Dept Data Logging chapter.

Timecode/Stopwatch - tap to view either running Timecode or a Stopwatch-- and options to start/stop/reset the Stopwatch, and paste time into a script note that sticks to the PDF.

Scene - tap to change data fields and type Scene/Take notes. Read more about this in the Script Dept Data Logging chapter.

Video (iPad only) - tap to show/hide streaming camera video in a small window that floats above the script pages. Tap the video window to drag it around the screen. The video icon only appears in the toolbar after connecting to a Teradek Cube from the Video tab/screen.

Annotation - shows/hides a toolbar of annotation tools used to markup the script (described immediately below).

Back - returns to the Script Setup screen.

Annotation Toolbar (Screen Left)

The Annotation Toolbar - contains tools used to draw tramlines, add notes, and other marks to the script (collectively known as Annotations). Most tools are arranged in groups (as denoted by a small triangle in each tool’s lower right corner). Long-tap a grouped tool to show/choose a different tool from its group. The tools/groups are:

Note Tools Group

Text Note - creates a typed note that sticks to the PDF page and is always visible.

Sticky Callout Note - creates a typed note that collapses to an icon on the PDF page-- with a line and arrow that can be used to point to something on the page.

Sticky Note - creates a typed note that collapses to an icon on the PDF page. Tap the note icon to view/edit its sticky note.

Image Note - pastes an image from the Camera or Photos app onto the PDF page.

Audio Note - records a voice note, displayed as a speaker icon on the PDF page. Tap the icon to listen to the audio recording.

Line Tools Group

Line - draws a single line segment on the page.

Line Segment - draws multiple, connected line segments on the page.

Rectangle - draws a rectangle on the page.

Oval - draws an oval on the page.

Polygon - works similarly to the Line Segment tool.

Ink Tools Group

Ink Pen - draws free-form lines and handwritten notes on the page that can be erased with the Eraser tool.

Hilighter - like the Pen tool, but with translucent ink.

Ungrouped Tools

Eraser - erases portions of objects created by the Ink and Tramline tools. The Eraser tool does not work on annotations created by tools in the Note and Line groups.

Selection - used to select and group multiple objects. With no annotation tool selected, tap a page annotation to select it.

Tramline - tap to paste a straight, vertical ink line onto the page. Tap the tool repeatedly to add more lines to the selected tramline. Tip: select any existing tramline or header, then tap this tool to add more lines.

Stylus - tap to connect or disconnect a bluetooth stylus. See the next chapter for details.

Color - tap to choose the ink, text, or line color.

Undo - tap to Undo annotation actions.

Redo - tap to Redo undone annotation actions.

Drag - tap to move the Annotation Toolbar to the left, right, or top of the screen.

Close - tap to hide the Annotation Toolbar (useful when the toolbar is positioned at the top of the screen; covering the toolbar).

A stylus can speed script annotation, and help to make handwritten note annotations more legible. MovieSlate supports bluetooth styluses from leading manufacturers.

Connecting a Stylus

Tap the Stylus button in the Annotation Toolbar. Choose your stylus from the list of brands that appear (if using an Apple Pencil with an iPad Pro, then choose the None option). The connection process is usually: press the stylus’ physical button until its light starts blinking. Within seconds, a connection is then established.

To troubleshoot connection issues, consult the instructions that came with the stylus— since the connection process can vary from brand to brand.

Stylus Settings

Stylus Settings are available for most stylus brands. With a stylus connected, tap the Stylus button in the Annotation Toolbar, then tap the Settings option (if present) from the stylus menu. When using an Apple Pencil stylus, choose None from the list of stylus brands.

Button Actions are available for some stylus models. Use the Stylus Settings screen to assign an action to one or more stylus buttons. Pressing a stylus button can be a handy way to quickly change annotation tools or undo/redo the last annotation.

Writing Style can be configured for some stylus models to optimize stylus tracking accuracy. Use the Stylus Settings screen to tell the stylus how you hold your stylus, and in which hand.

Palm Rejection

Palm Rejection is a feature which temporarily disables multi-touch gestures, so you can safely rest the palm of your hand on the screen while drawing with the stylus, without unintentionally zooming or scrolling the PDF. Palm Rejection is automatically enabled when a stylus is connected and the Eraser, Ink Tools, or Line Tools are selected.

Marked scripts contain colored lines drawn down each page, known as tramlines (or coverage lines). Each tramline corresponds to a particular shot, and provides a visual reference as to what the shot actually covers. Colors generally indicate the shot type. For instance: red is often used for masters and wide shots; blue for singles; black for multiples; and green for cutaways/inserts.

Tramlines can be straight and/or squiggly. The squiggly lines indicate that the dialogue and/or action is off-screen (not in the shot; not photographed).

A tramline header note usually appears above each tramline. For SingleCam productions, the header contains the Scene/Setup. For MultiCam productions, the header contains timecode.

Creating Tramlines

To choose a tramline color - select the Ink Pen annotation tool. Then tap the Color tool, and select a color. The app remembers the last color you chose.

To create a tramline header - tap the Tramline Header annotation tool. A new header note then appears in the margin of the script page. Drag the selected header into position.

To start a tramline - tap the Tramline annotation tool. A new straight inked tramline then appears in the margin of the script page. Tap the Tramline tool repeatedly to add more lines to the selected tramline. Drag the selected tramline into position. Tip: with any existing tramline or header selected, tap this tool to add more lines to the selection.

To resize a tramline - select it, then drag its bottom-right knob up or down— without making the selection box any wider.

To draw tramline squiggles - select the Eraser annotation tool, and use it to erase a portion of a straight tramline. Then choose the Ink Pen tool and draw squiggles over the erased tramline section.

Enter Data into Fields from the Script PDF Screen which MovieSlate saves (logs) for each take, and uses to later generate Progress Reports, Facing Pages, and Editor’s Logs. Most field data is persistent; you only need to alter the data when something changes on set. MovieSlate can automatically update some fields for you (such as the DATE), and auto-increment some data (such as SLATE, TAKE). So even though MovieSlate saves a huge amount of data to its shot log History for each shot, you generally change a very small amount of data from take to take.

Tap the Scene button in the toolbar (at screen top) to show/hide the data fields:

Scene - tap to enter a scene/setup (such as 1A) using the keypad. Swipe up/down on the Scene to increment/decrement the setup without using the keypad. From MovieSlate Settings > Fields > Scene , you can choose from various scene formatting styles: 123-123, 123.123, 123/123, 123abc, 123ABC.

Time - displays the Scene’s average take duration. Tap to enter a Scene duration from the keypad.

Slate - tap to enter the current Slate (or Segment number) using the keypad. Swipe up/down to increment/decrement the Slate number. You can choose to auto-increment the Slate number when each take ends from: MovieSlate Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior.

Take - tap to enter the current Take number using the keypad. Swipe up/down to increment/decrement the Take number. You can choose to auto-increment the Take number when each take ends from: MovieSlate Settings > Behavior > Shot Behavior.

Your production logo can optionally be included in Script Reports. From the MovieSlate tab/screen, swipe left once to reveal a blank space for a production graphic— which is displayed on the slate. Tap the blank space to choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. The graphic will then appear momentarily.

Page Scroll Style - choose whether to scroll/view a single page at a time, or to scroll pages as a continous list and view more than one page at a time. Since PDF annotations cannot actually span pages, the Continous setting is useful when creating new tramline annotations that appear to be extensions of tramlines from a previous page.

SingleCam Tramlines

These options are used when working on a SingleCam Script Dept project.

SingleCam Font Size - choose the font size used when creating a new Tramline Header.

SingleCam Contents - choose which fields should be included when creating a new Tramline Header. Drag the right edge of each field to change the order in which fields will be positioned within the Tramline Header.

Prompt for Recent - disable to prevent MovieSlate from prompting for recent Scene and Take information.

Each time you “start a shot”, all the fields on the MovieSlate, Camera, and Sound Dept screens are saved to MovieSlate’s shot log History.

Use the “History” screen to view, search, edit, duplicate, MovieSlate’s shot log History and Notes. From this screen, you can also export/email various History Reports.

MovieSlate’s shot log History is organized as a collection of Projects (one per production or television episode). Each Project is a collection of Shots. Each Shot contains data fields, and can optionally contain a collection of Notes.

Internally, MovieSlate stores its shot log History data in a SQLite database file called userdata.sql— which you can backup or import from iTunes using iOS File Sharing. You can also export a “MovieSlate XML” History Report, then archive the shot log data to an external database such as Pomfort’s Silverstack SET desktop appliation.

NAVIGATING THE HISTORY SCREENS

On iPhone and iPod touch, History is presented as a stack of screens: Projects > Shots > Shot Details > Shot Notes.

On the iPad (in landscape orientation), the Projects > Shots stack of screens is presented on the left, and the Shot Details and Notes are shown on the right. To view the Projects > Shots stack of screens while in portrait orientation, tap the Shot x of x button at the top of the Shot Details screen.

Tap the blue ">" button to edit a Project’s information— which includes Production name, Episode, Producer, Client info, Camera format, and Sound fields (when the Sound Department plugin is installed).

To delete projects, and all their shots & notes, swipe your finger across a project’s name. Or tap the Edit button then the Trashcan button. Warning: all deletes are final. It’s a good idea to email the history log to yourself before deleting any information, or use iOS File Sharing to save a backup of your MovieSlate userdata.sql file.

This screen is divided into sections. Each section represents a project, and contains a row for each of its shots.

Tap a section header to quickly scroll:

to the first shot — when viewing a Single Project

to the previous project — when viewing All Projects

Tap a section footer to quickly scroll:

to the last shot — when viewing a Single Project

to the next project — when viewing All Projects

SHOT ROWS

Tap on a shot row to view its details.

On iPad, double-tap a shot to un/circle its take. While editing the list of Shots, tap the Un/Circle All button to un/circle all shots in the list.

A colored badge displays the number Shot Notes (if any) attached to the shot. Tap the badge (on iPhone or iPod touch) to view a list of the Shot Notes.

A red badge appears next to the shot that is currently “in progress” (if any).

To Delete a shot and all its Notes, swipe your finger across a shot’s name. Or tap the Edit button, then the Trash can button. Warning: all deletes are final. It’s a good idea to email the history log to yourself before deleting any information, or use iOS File Sharing to save a backup of your MovieSlate userdata.sql file.

SEARCHING

You can search the list by SLATE, camera/sound ROLL, SCENE, or TAKE. To do so, tap on the search box at the top of this screen. A keypad appears. Example: to search for scene 2: tap the keypad’s SCENE button, then tap the keypad’s “2” button.

You can also combine search terms. Example: to search for scene 2, take 5: tap the keypad’s SCENE button, tap the keypad’s “2” button, tap the keypad’s TAKE button, then tap the keypad’s “5” button.

To clear the search, tap the round “x” button on the right side of the search text at the top of the screen.

To close the keypad, tap the keypad’s blue “close” button.

SORTING

To change the list’s sort order, tap the Edit button at the top of the screen, then tap the up/down triangles to sort the list in ascending or descending order.

While editing, tap the Sort button (to the left of the up/down arrows) to sort on a different field (such as Date/Time, Rank, Rank, Title, Slate, Camera/Sound Roll).

This screen displays all the data for a particular shot in the MovieSlate shot log History.

Edit on any of this screen’s fields by tapping on them— that includes the date, time, timecode, and geographical location.

Tap the white arrow buttons to show the previous and next shot.

Tap the slate button (at the top-right of this screen) to:

Clone the Shot - create a duplicate of the selected shot.

Copy to Slate - load all the shot's data to the Slate, Camera, and Sound Dept screens.

Copy to Slate, then Delete - use this option to essentially "reslate" a shot. Important! After tapping this button, you should immediately tap the clapper sticks to start a new shot in order to save the data back to History (along with new timecode, note, and GPS location data).

Tap the Un/Circle button to circle or uncircle this take (shot). A circle is then drawn around the shot’s TAKE field.

Tap the camera button to create a new Image Note for this shot by taking a new photo (from iOS devices with cameras), or choosing an existing picture from the iOS Camera Roll or Photo Library (useful for importing sketches created by iOS drawing apps).

Tap the microphone button to create a new Voice Note for this shot.

Tap the speaker button to toggle the speaker on/off when listening to voice notes.

ON iPHONE AND iPOD TOUCH

Tap the Sound Tracks row (if visible) to display the Sound Tracks screen where you can edit any of the track data.

Tap the “Shot Notes” row to display a list of Notes (if any) for this shot.

Tap the buttons below the Notes list screen to create new text, voice, or image notes.

ON iPAD

This screen comprises most of the History screen.

The top of this screen displays the Shot’s Details, arranged in blocks within a white, rounded box. Scroll through the detail blocks by swiping your finger to the left/right over the white, rounded box.

The bottom of this screen contains a list of Shot Notes for the selected shot. Tap the buttons above the Shot Notes list to create new text, voice, or image notes. Tap the Search field at the top-right of the screen to search all Notes in all Shots.

Tap the zoom button (with 4 arrows) to zoom the Shot Notes list to full screen height. Tqp the zoom button again to return to normal.

Tap the Tracks & Notes title to hide/show the Sound Tracks (when the Sound Department plugin is installed).

SHOT NOTES

Tap to edit date, time, timecode.

To edit a note’s text, tap on the right side of a note row’s red divider lines.

View an note’s image, or hear a note’s audio by tapping the blue button on the right side of the note.

To create/send History Reports, go to the History screen, tap the share button (far-right on iPad; in various places on iPhone and iPod touch). After you choose the report’s format and scope, the report file(s) are optionally zipped along with note images and audio files, and attached to an email. An email screen appears where you can add recipients, edit the email’s message, then click the Send button.

REPORT FORMAT

MovieSlate supports a number of different report formats, described below. You can pre-select a format from MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports.

Otherwise, after tapping the share button, a menu appears with the following choices:

Relinking Offline FCP7 Media - after import, FCP7 shows each shot as “Media Offline”. To relink the shot to the offline media (movie) files, right-click the clip and choose “Reconnect Media”. Final Cut Pro uses filenames to link logged meta data with media, so it is important to enter accurate data into the Filename field on MovieSlate's Camera tab/screen.

Prelude Marker Notes - exports a MovieSlate Prelude Markers.xmp file containing shot notes. After receiving the exported file on your computer: run Adobe Prelude; open a clip’s timeline; open the Unassociated Metadata window (from Prelude’s Window menu); click the Import button; and choose the XMP file that you exported from MovieSlate. Select the markers you want to assign to the selected clip, then click the Apply Markers button.

A better Premiere workflow might be to export your data in Final Cut Pro 7 XML format, then import the FCP7 XML into Premiere. The FCP7 XML supports a much larger set of MovieSlate meta-data than is supported by the Premiere Batch format.

CSV - each of this text file’s lines contains a shot, and the shot’s fields are separated by commas. This format is suitable for importing shot log History into computer spreadsheets or databases.

Plain Text - each of this text file’s lines contains a shot, and the shot’s fields are separated by tab characters. This format is suitable for importing shot log History into computer spreadsheets or databases.

REPORT SCOPE

After choosing a report format, MovieSlate will often prompt you to choose which records will appear in the report— the “scope”. Scope may be limited based upon which History screen (Projects, Shots, Details) you’re viewing when you tap the share button to send a report.

Several report formats (Formatted HTML, CSV, Plain Text) can contain a subset of shot data. You can choose which shot data fields will appear in these reports, and the order in which they will appear— from MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Report Contents.

REPORT OPTIONS

Attachments. If your MovieSlate shot log History contains image or voice notes, then you can choose to send them along with your reports— from MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Attach Files. When sending a large number of files, MovieSlate may attach the files to multiple emails, and send them in batches.

Zip Compression. To reduce the amount of time it takes to email a report and related files, you can choose to compress the email attachments into a zip file and optionally protect it with a password— from MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Compress Files. This is highly recommended for XML report formats which compress significantly. To decompress password-protected zip files on a computer, you may need to install Stuffit Expander on your computer.

Emails and Archives. Send your reports via email and/or ZIP archive them inside MovieSlate. MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Email + Archive. You can manage your archives by tapping the Archives button and you can download them to your computer using iOS File Sharing when you don't have an internet connection to send email.

To download the archives directly to your computer connect your device to your computer and open the iTunes application. Click on your device, then click on the Apps tab. Scroll the window down to the iOS File Sharing section and click on the MovieSlate icon. The list on the left will display all the reports you have archived. You can drag the files to your desktop or select the archives and click the Save button. All report archive file names begin with "archive".

Email Recipient List. You can create a list of email addresses to whom your reports will be sent. Tap on MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > Email To or Email BCC, and choose to configure a default or per-project setting. Then tap choose an email address by tapping the blue plus button (repeat to add multiple email addresses). You can also type or paste email addresses into this recipient list. When this list is empty, you’ll be able to choose email recipients after the history report has been build.

MY INFO &MY LOGO &PRODUCTION GRAPHIC

Your contact information, logo, and/or a production graphic can appear at the top of two of MovieSlate’s report formats: Formattted HTML, and Sound Report.

My Info - go to MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > My Info. Tap the blue plus button in the upper right corner of the My Info screen. Choose your contact card from the iOS Address Book to paste its data into My Info. Edit the pasted text as needed. Make sure the Include in Reports button is ON. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time— not each time you run a report.

My Logo - go to MovieSlate’s Settings > History Reports > My Logo. Tap the Choose Image, then choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time— not each time you run a report.

Production Graphic - from the MovieSlate screen, swipe left once to reveal a blank space for a production graphic— which is displayed on the slate (and appears at the top of HTML and Sound reports). Tap the blank space to choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. The graphic will then appear momentarily.

MovieSlate Cloud is a free service you can use to backup and restore your MovieSlate data and settings, and share MovieSlate Workspaces.

To signup: go to the MovieSlate Cloud section of the Settings screen, and tap the "Register" button. Enter your name, email address, and a new strong password. Check your email, and tap its Activate Account link.

To Sign in: go to the MovieSlate Cloud section of the Settings screen. Enable the Remember Password option to save your password in the iOS Keychain so you won’t have to enter it again. Then tap the Sign In button. When prompted, enter your username and password.

To Backup: tap the Backup button to archive all your MovieSlate data on the Cloud.

To Restore: tap the Restore button to replace all your data with a backup from the Cloud.

Store Multiple Backups with a PRO Features subscription (an optional in-app purchase). This is a great way to archive and restore old projects.

Share Projects with Colleagues with a PRO Features subscription (an optional in-app purchase). Tap the Send Shared Data button; choose one or more projects; and enter a MovieSlate user colleagues’s email address. To retrieve the shared project, your colleague does not need to be a PRO Features subscriber.

More to Come! Over time, we’ll be adding more free and paid services to MovieSlate Cloud— making it easy to collaborate with colleagues via the web. Production and Post-Production teams will be able to share data, search for data, generate reports, and more.

Use this screen to learn about and purchase a subscription to MovieSlate PRO features. Subscriptions are purchased directly within the MovieSlate app using your iTunes account information, and are enabled immediately upon purchase.

Your iTunes Account will be charged upon purchase confirmation. The subscription automatically renews on a monthly basis unless you set auto-renew to be turned off in your iTunes Account at least 24 hours before the end of the current subscription period. Your iTunes Account is charged for a renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period.

You can manage your subscription by signing into iTunes and navigating to the Account Settings section after purchase. There are no cancellations for the current subscription period during the active subscription period. (Meaning there are no refunds— if you cancel your subscription, the service benefits will be available to you until the end of your current subscription period.)

Once you’ve purchased a subscription, you can use it on any compatible iOS device that’s associated with your iTunes account. Just install MovieSlate on that iOS device, go to MovieSlate’s Settings > MovieSlate Store, and tap the RESTORE button at the top of the screen. You will be prompted to enter your iTunes account name and password.

Workspaces are collections of MovieSlate Settings— configured for a particular workflow. You can load Settings from a Workspace, create new Workspaces that contain your current Settings, and share Workspaces with other MovieSlate users. For instance, Production companies might create custom Workspaces and share them with new crew members. Or one crew member might build and send a Workspace to a crew member who is filling in for the day.

WORKSPACE ICONS

There are three types of Workspaces:

Default - are built into the MovieSlate app and cannot be deleted.

Local - were created by you.

Downloaded - were downloaded from MovieSlate Cloud.

USING WORKSPACES

Creating a Workspace - Go to MovieSlate’s Settings > Workspaces. Tap the + button. Provide a name for the new Workspace.

Sharing a Workspace - Then go to MovieSlate’s Settings > MovieSlate Cloud, and log in. Go to MovieSlate’s Settings > Workspaces. Tap the share button (to the right of a Workspace name).

Loading a Workspace - Go to MovieSlate’s Settings > Workspaces. Tap on a Workspace. Choose to replace or merge check-marked Settings Categories with those from the Workspace.

From this screen, you can customize the appearance of clappersticks, hinges, colors, fonts, and more.

THEMES

Choose a Theme to quickly apply multiple appearance options at once.

Create a New Theme by tapping the Save as New Theme button after changing one or more Theme Elements (described below).

THEME ELEMENTS

Clapper Hinge - the hinge’s appearance can be customized, and the hinge can appear on the left or right side of the clapper sticks. The hinge is visual decoration, and can also be configured as a button (from MovieSlate Settings > Behavior > Clapper Hinge).

Clapper Top - a design to use for the top clapper stick.

Clapper Bottom - a design to use for the bottom clapper stick (or choose Match Top to match whatever design is used for the top clapper stick).

Clapper Text - text to appear on the right side of the top clapper stick. To choose the text color, tap the rainbow button to the right of the text field.

Background - tap this row to choose a slate’s background color or graphic. To choose a custom color, tap the rainbow button to the right of the text field.

Timecode Color - tap this row to choose the color of the timecode and userbits digits from a list of color swatches. To choose a custom color, tap the rainbow button to the right of the text field.

Timecode Font - the font of the timecode and userbits digits. The digits may be more legible with the Draw Digits with Ghosted elements disabled.

Slate Font - the font for all other text fields on the slate screen. Tap one of the five A buttons at the top of this screen to view: San Serif, Serif, Typewriter, Handwriting, or Script fonts.

FLASH/CHART GRAPHICS

Flash Graphic - choose a graphic to display on the MovieSlate screen when the shot starts. Tap Choose Color button (on the Solid Color choice) to choose a background color for the Solid Color and Clap! choices.

Flash Duration - the number of seconds (or frames) to display the Flash Graphic on the MovieSlate screen when the start shots.

Color Chart, Gray Card, Focus Chart - these graphics are displayed when you tap one of the corresponding buttons on the MovieSlate screen— which can be useful to your camera operator when adjusting white balance or setting lens focus. To reveal the buttons, slide the clapper sticks to the left (swipe twice on iPhone and iPod touch).

Note that traditional paper-based color charts and gray cards reflect and absorb light. Such charts actually change color as environmental lighting conditions change. However, iOS Device screens emit light rather than reflect and absorbing it, and so don't accurately reflect changes in environmental lighting conditions. Therefore, MovieSlate's color charts and gray cards can yield different results than you may be used to when using traditional paper-based charts.

SOUND DEPT

Track Style - choose how tall each Sound Track should be, and which fields each should include.

Track Arm Color - sets the color of each track’s enabled arm button. Tap this settings row to choose from a menu of choices, or to have the arm button color match the track label color. Tap the rainbow button (on the right side of the row) to choose a custom color.

Locks Rotation - prevents the screen from automatically rotating when your iOS device is rotated. You can also lock and unlock screen rotation by swiping up from the bottom of the screen, and tapping the orientation lock button (with the circle-arrow icon). The system-wide rotation lock supercedes MovieSlate's rotation lock.

Tap “Start Shot” button - when chosen, the clapper sticks are replaced with a Start the Shot button.

Clapper or Denecke TS-TCB sticks - when synced with a physical Denecke TS-TCB slate, shots will started by closing the TS-TCB’s sticks, or by tapping MovieSlate’s closed sticks.

Clap External Clappersticks - for use with an external clapper stick case such as ikan’s T-Slate. Shortly after the external sticks clap, MovieSlate’s clap detection software triggers the shot, saving it to History. In this mode, a Detect External Claps button appears over the onscreen clapper sticks. Tap the button to enable external clap detection prior to each shot. After enabling detection, two additional buttons appear: Detect Motion and Detect Sound. You can tap those buttons to enable/disable that form of clap detection. When motion and sound are both enabled, detection is quite good. However, you may experience false positives in some locations as the clap detection software is experimental and will be improved in later MovieSlate releases. To help prevent false-positives, clap detection is auto-disabled when the shot starts. During a shot, MovieSlate’s In-Progress screen contains a False Take button to quickly undo any false positives. Note that this feature is not compatible with Music Video mode.

When Using External Clappersticks, these additional settings come into play:

Arm Before Each Shot - helps reduce false positives by showing a Detect External Claps button on MovieSlate’s clappersticks— which must be tapped to arm external clapperstick detection before each shot.

Show Slate when Shot Ends - immediately return to the slate screen. Otherwise, the shot ends, but the Shot In Progress screen is not automatically closed— so you can continue to rate and make notes about the shot that just ended.

Show Tail Sticks - display the Slate screen upside down with the shot’s ending timecode. Tap anywhere on the Tail Sticks screen to dismiss it. This feature is sometimes used when the camera has not filmed the clapperboard at the start of the take for some reason. So a “Tail Sticks” order is given, and a “tail slate” (or “end slate”) is filmed at the end of a take— during which the clapperboard is held upside-down (as an indication to post-production that this is a tail slate).

On false takes, Sound Mixers are sometimes instructed to “hold the roll” and so stop their recorders. Since new sound files were created on the recorders, MovieSlate’s SLATE (SEG) number and filenames should logically increment. Things may be different for the Camera Department. Set these options to choose which items MovieSlate should auto-increment on false takes:

Save to History - determines if the False Take should be saved to History, or automatically deleted.

Prefix Take with “FT” - when saving a False Take to History, you can choose to have its TAKE field prefixed with “FT” (in History and Reports only— this setting does not affect the TAKE field shown on the MovieSlate and Sound Dept screens).

Increment Take number - automatically increase the TAKE field’s number/letter.

After tapping one of the options below, a screen with one or more odometer-style wheels of numbers appears. Drag the wheels until the digits representing the number of seconds (or frames) you want line up in the center (highlighted) row. Example: enter two and a half seconds as “02.50”.

PRE-ROLL (AT SHOT START)

Pre-Roll Beeps - the number of “pre-roll” beeps played during the Delay/Pre-Roll duration (time permitting) as an audio on-set warning that the shot is about to start.

Delay/Pre-Roll - after closing the clapper, the number of seconds (or frames) before a take actually starts. Timecode is “pre-rolled” by this amount when synced to a Music Video song.

Song Delay - following the pre-roll duration, extra seconds (or frames) of silence before a Music Video song actually starts playback.

Beep Interval - the number of seconds (or frames) between pre-roll beep sounds. The beeps stop playing once the pre-roll ends, and the shot begins. So setting a large Beep Interval may result in fewer than the Pre-Roll Beeps you specified.

SHOW CREDITS (AT SHOT START/END)

A “Credits” animation can appear on the MovieSlate screen. Each animation rapidly displays individual slate and production field values full-screen for an instant so they can be photographed by the motion picture camera. This visual data can be useful when viewed frame-by-frame in a post-production editing suite.

Credits can also be shown on a synced Denecke TS-TCB slate’s bottom display when MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Triggers > Clapper or Denecke TS-TCB sticks is enabled, and Show Credits (below) is set appropriately.

Show Credits - a “master switch” to quickly enable/disable credits animations on the MovieSlate and Denecke TS-TCB screens.

Sticks Open - shown when the MovieSlate sticks are tapped, or in a loop while a synced Denecke TS-TCB sticks are open.

Shot Ends - shown when the End Shot button is tapped on the MovieSlate or Sound Dept tabs.

Each of the three “Sticks Open”, “Sticks Clap”, “Shot Ends” rows determine:

Duration of each credit (in seconds or frames) - tap each row’s number button.

When/If Credits Appear - tap each row’s ON/OFF switch (visible when Show Credits is not none).

Credit Fields to Display - tap each row itself to choose the fields.

Additional Denecke TS-TCB options:

Default TS-TCB text - display a single field; or none (to blank the TS-TCB’s bottom display) to display when credit animations are not running

Invert TS-TCB Field Prefix - a few fields (Slate, Roll, Scene, Take, Duration, CAM) are always prefixed with a single character label and a colon. Enable this option to invert the label to sharply contrast with the field data.

Prefix All Fields with Labels - when enabled, each credit is prefixed with its text field label on the TS-TCB.

SPEAK CREDITS (iOS 7 and later only)

Voice + Options - set the speed and pitch of the many available voices.

Speak Before/After Clap - tap the ON/OFF switch to have credits spoken when shots start. Tap the row to choose: when to speak the credits (before/after the clap); which credits to speak; and the order in which credits are spoken.

Speak After Shot - tap the ON/OFF switch to enable MovieSlate to speak credits after your shot is completed. Tap the row to choose: which credits to speak; and the order in which credits are spoken.

“Edit” button (at the top of the screen) to alphabetize Groups, rearrange them, load the default Snippets and Groups, and delete individual Groups and the Snippets they contain.

Group Name Rows - tap on a row to manage its Snippets.

SNIPPET ABBREVIATIONS

Each Snippet consists of two fields:

a text phrase

an optional abbreviation

You can choose how abbreviations are used from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets > Abbreviations:

Off - when you tap the Snippet Chooser’s Insert button, the Snippet’s text phrase is inserted into the text field.

Insert Abbreviations - when you tap the Snippet Chooser’s Insert button, the Snippet’s abbreviation phrase is inserted into the text field.

Expand Abbreviations - when using the keyboard to type a Snippet’s abbreviation followed by a space, the abbreviation will be automatically replaced by the Snippet’s text phrase.

MANAGING SNIPPETS

Tap on a Snippet Group to edit its Snippets from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Snippets. A list of Snippets appears.

Add Snippet + Abbreviation to add a single new Snippet. Enter the Snippet’s text phrase in the top field, then its optional abbreviation in the bottom field.

Add/Paste Snippets to quickly add an entire list of snippets to the group. From a computer, you could type batches of snippets into an email (one snippet per line); send the email to your iOS device; copy a batch of snippets to the pasteboard; then tap the “Paste Snippets” button.

Tap on a Snippet to edit its text phrase and/or abbreviation.

Tap the “Edit” button to alphabetize Snippets, rearrange their order, or delete them.

If you have the optional Sound Dept feature enabled, you can set all 32 sound track labels in one fell swoop by tapping the Sound button at the top of the list of fields, then the Track Labels button (in the upper right corner). From there, you can choose numbered labels (T01 - T24) or lettered labels (L/R and A-V).

FIELD INPUT STYLES

A Field Input Style determines the tool used to enter text into a field, and sometimes the format of the text itself. When you tap on a MovieSlate text field, one of these entry tools will appear:

Keyboard - the standard iOS keyboard.

Keypad - a keyboard containing number buttons. Other buttons appear based upon the particular field being edited.

Date Chooser - a scrolling list of months/days/years used for editing the DATE and/or other fields.

Buttons - a grid of buttons, each containing a frequently-used phrase called a Snippet. The Button field input style is only available for the Notes field on an iPad.

List - a menu of available options (available when synced with selected cameras).

Menus - a menu of frequently-used phrases called Snippets. It is faster to choose a single snippet from a menu than the Snippet Chooser.

Snippet Chooser - a scrolling list of frequently-used phrases called Snippets. It is faster to choose multiple snippets from a Snippet Chooser than a menu.

Filename Editor - the Camera, MultiCam, and Sound Dept screens all contain filename fields. MovieSlate supports many automated filenaming schemes (called filename input styles). When a filename field is tapped, a Filename Editor may, or may not appear. Many filename input styles automatically build filenames using static text, auto-incrementing numbers, and data from other fields— and so often require little or no user input because they are automatically updated each time a shot ends.

You can choose which entry tool (keyboard, keypad, date, buttons, list, menu, snippets, filename) should appear for a particular field from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields.

You can also configure a particular data format style (such as “123ABC”) when choosing the Keypad input style for certain fields (such as SCENE). This format style tells MovieSlate how to format the next/previous SCENE number in the keypad and elsewhere.

You can also configure a specific Snippet Group to appear by default for a field, when choosing the Button, Menu, or Snippet input styles. The plain “Buttons”, “Menu”, or “Snippets” input styles defaults to the most recently used Snippet Group.

FILENAME INPUT STYLES

The Camera, MultiCam, and Sound Dept screens all contain filename fields. MovieSlate supports automated filenaming schemes (called filename input styles) which automatically build filenames using static text, auto-incrementing numbers, and data from other fields— and so often require little or no user input.

To select, edit, or create filename input styles from MovieSlate’s Settings > Text Fields. Then tap on a Filename, and a list of filename input styles appears.

Reload Styles by tapping on the red Load Default Filename Styles button. This will replace all existing Filename input styles with the default styles.

Choose a Style by tapping on the style’s name. The selected style will be used to build the Filename field’s text.

Create a Custom Style by tapping the plus button at the top-right of the screen, then name your new style, and edit its elements (using the instructions in the section below).

Edit a Style’s Name - by tapping the Edit button at the top of the screen, then tapping on a style’s name.

Edit a Style by tapping its blue chevron button.

EDITING FILENAME INPUT STYLES

Filename input styles are built as sequences of elements. Each element describes a piece of data that MovieSlate uses to automatically build a filename.

Move an Element by tapping on the three lines to the right of the element, then dragging the element up or down. This changes the element’s order within the sequence.

Remove an Element by tapping the round, red minus sign button to the left of the element.

Add an Element by tapping the round, green plus sign button; or by tapping the Add Element item at the bottom of the elements list. The element editor will appear (described below).

Edit an Element by on its icon or name. The element editor will appear (described below).

THE ELEMENT EDITOR: EDITING FILENAME INPUT STYLE ELEMENTS

Filename input styles are sequences of these Element types:

Text - free-form text elements can can be read-only (hidden), or editible (visible) when editing filenames from the Camera, MultiCam, and Sound Dept screens.

Numbers - numeric data elements which automatically increment with each new shot, and can set when editing filenames from the Camera, MultiCam, and Sound Dept screens.

Data - text from other data fields (such as Roll, Scene, Take, Date) used to automatically populate a portion of the filename. Data elements are always hidden when editing filenames from the Camera, MultiCam, and Sound Dept screens.

Any filename element can be optionally padded with prefix characters to a minimum length. So for instance, an element with a value of "1" padded to a length of "3" with a "0" prefix would appear in the filename as "001". Note that data elements can exceed the minimum length set in the element editor.

Logger Info - enter the unit, name, department, and title of the person logging the shot log history.

Save History - when ON, shot data is saved to MovieSlate’s shot log History when the clapper sticks close and a shot starts.

Data-Only Mode - when ON, you can log shots with a single button tap. Shots won’t include timecode start/stop data. You can also enable/disable this mode by tapping the timecode display, then the “NO Timecode” keypad button (shown at right).

(GPS) LOCATIONS FOR HISTORY

Find & Save Locations - when ON, MovieSlate will use the iOS device’s GPS radio (and/or WiFi and cellular towers) to locate the device’s current geographical location, look up the nearest address, and save all that Location information in MovieSlate’s shot log History. It can take up to a minute to obtain new map coordinates (latitude/longitude). An internet connection is required to lookup street address nearest to the map coordinates. To use this option, you must run the Settings app and enable “Location Services” for MovieSlate.

Refresh on Each Shot - when ON, MovieSlate will automatically refresh map coordinates each time a shot is started (if both Find & Save Locations is ON, and you have run the Settings app and enable Location Services for MovieSlate). Note that frequent map coordinate refreshing can quickly drain your iOS device’s battery.

HISTORY NOTES

Default Note Color - the default background color used when creating new notes. This color can be changed when editing a Note.

Save Clapper Notes - you can create shot Notes even when there is no shot in progress. Use this section to choose whether the new Notes should stick to the “Last Shot” (the most recent shot), or the “Next Shot” (the next shot you create).

After Creating Images - choose what should happen next: edit the image, add some text to the note, or nothing.

Save to Photos - when ON, Image Note photos are emailed as thumbnails, and optionally saved at full size in the Photos app.

Clear Sound Notes - when ON, the Sound Dept’s Sound Notes field will be cleared each time a shot ends.

HISTORY DATA IMPORT

CSV Templates - MovieSlate can import projects and history from CSV files. Tap Send to email CSV template files to your computer, import them into a spreadsheet program, type data, then email them back to MovieSlate. For more info, see the last section of the MovieSlate screen: Workflow chapter of this User Guide.

Copy-to-Slate, and then - determine what should happen after a tap on the History > Shot Details > Slate button, and the Copy this Shot to Slate option is selected.

Relinking Offline FCP7 Media - after import, FCP7 shows each shot as “Media Offline”. To relink the shot to the offline media (movie) files, right-click the clip and choose “Reconnect Media”. Final Cut Pro uses filenames to link logged meta data with media, so it is important to enter accurate data into the Filename field on MovieSlate's Camera tab/screen.

Prelude Marker Notes - exports a MovieSlate Prelude Markers.xmp file containing shot notes. After receiving the exported file on your computer: run Adobe Prelude; open a clip’s timeline; open the Unassociated Metadata window (from Prelude’s Window menu); click the Import button; and choose the XMP file that you exported from MovieSlate. Select the markers you want to assign to the selected clip, then click the Apply Markers button.

A better Premiere workflow might be to export your data in Final Cut Pro 7 XML format, then import the FCP7 XML into Premiere. The FCP7 XML supports a much larger set of MovieSlate meta-data than is supported by the Premiere Batch format.

CSV - each of this text file’s lines contains a shot, and the shot’s fields are separated by commas. This format is suitable for importing shot log History into computer spreadsheets or databases.

Plain Text - each of this text file’s lines contains a shot, and the shot’s fields are separated by tab characters. This format is suitable for importing shot log History into computer spreadsheets or databases.

Report Contents - choose which data fields are included in Plain Text, CSV Data, and Formatted HTML Reports (all other History Reports are fixed formats). There are two choices for including Notes in reports:

Notes as a Column glues all a shot’s Notes together and puts them into a column in that shot’s row.

Email To and Email BCC - create a list of email addresses to whom History Reports will be sent by default, or on a per-project basis. When entering the addresses, type/paste email addresses into this recipient list, or tap the blue plus button to choose an email address from the contacts list (repeat to add multiple email addresses). When these lists are empty, you’ll be able to choose email recipients after the History Report has been built.

Email Contents - create an email message to accompany the History Report, by default or on a per-project basis.

Email + Archives. Send your reports via email and/or ZIP archive them inside MovieSlate. You can manage your archives by tapping the Archives button and you can download them to your computer using iOS File Sharing when you don't have an internet connection to send email.

To download the archives directly to your computer connect your device to your computer and open the iTunes application. Click on your device, then click on the Apps tab. Scroll the window down to the File Sharing section and click on the MovieSlate icon. The list on the left will display all the reports you have archived. You can drag the files to your desktop or select the archives and click the Save button. All report archive file names begin with "archive".

IMAGE + SOUND FILES (FROM NOTES)

Attach Files to Reports - choose whether images and audio (from your shot Notes) should be included with your History Reports.

Zip Compress Files - choose to compress History Report email attachments into a zip file and optionally protect it with a password. This option is highly recommended for XML report formats which compress significantly. To decompress password-protected zip files on a computer, you may need to install Stuffit Expander on your computer.

Use Short Filenames - report filenames are shortened to work better with how some email programs treat file attachments.

PDF REPORTS

HTML as PDF - enable this option to have MovieSlate convert HTML reports into PDF documents.

My Info - your contact info can be optionally included in Sound Reports. Tap the blue plus button in the upper right corner of the My Info screen. Choose your contact card from the iOS Address Book to paste its data into My Info. Edit the pasted text as needed. Make sure the Include in Reports button is ON. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time— not each time you run a Sound Report.

My Logo - your logo can appear at the top of HTML and Sound Reports. Tap the Choose Image, then choose a graphic from your iOS Photo library. Typically, you only need to enter this data one time— not each time you run a report.

Report Contents - choose which field columns should appear in the Sound Report.

Sort By - Choose how Sound Reports should be sorted. Drag the fields into the sort order you desire.

Column Arrows - have the report draw “fill down” arrows in certain columns to indicate repeating data. This can make the Sound Report much more readable by reducing clutter, and identifying exactly where data changed from shot to shot.

From these screens, you can set options for WiFi syncing— and when the Timecode Sync plugin is enabled, for WiFi/Headphone Jack timecode/data syncing, and app-to-app chat over WiFi.

LTC (LINEAR TIME CODE)

Test Headphone Connection - test your audio cables for receiving timecode from an external source via the headphone jack. Using this option, you can “Try before you Buy” the Timecode Sync Plugin

Required Cables and More - tap to view a webpage with information about the cables required for receiving timecode via the headphone jack.

Send Timecode Audio - choose whether to send timecode audio over the left, right, or both channels. This can be useful for Music Video shoots, where you might want to play song(s) back on the other stereo channel. In such situations, we recommend mixing your songs to monaural, and silencing one of the stereo channels on each song.

Calibrate LTC Lag - timecode received via LTC audio (the headphone jack) can lag behind the source’s timecode (generally between 2 and 4 frames). If you are experiencing a lag, then you can have MovieSlate compensate by using the values specified here (enter either frames or seconds). Start by zeroing out the frames and seconds in this screen. Then go to the main MovieSlate screen, and SYNC your camera. Make sure the timecode is not paused. Record video of both the MovieSlate and Camera timecode displays running side-by-side. Import that video into an editor (like Avid, Final Cut Pro, Premiere). Scrub through the video and pause on a single frame. Note the difference (in frames) between the two timecode displays. Go back to the MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Syncing > Calibrate LTC Lag screen and enter that difference into the frames field.

False Positive Duration - in order to reduce RecRun false positives, MovieSlate can ignore stop/start changes in external headphone jack timecode for a number of seconds after a shot auto-starts or auto-stops.

Control Synced Cameras - disable for read-only access to the synced camera.

Start a MultiCam Shot - when any synced camera starts recording a shot. This setting has no effect if there’s already a MultiCam master shot in progress (you are already MultiCam logging).

Send XML to LABO HAL - LABO HAL® is a hardware solution for connecting RED cameras over great distances (via IP addresses). Enable this setting to have MovieSlate send MovieSlate XML to HAL each time a shot ends.

With optional Pro Features, MovieSlate can remotely control specific sound recorders. Use this Settings screen to configure sound recorder control preferences.

Upon Connect - choose which direction scene/take/track data should sync upon connection to a sound recorder.

Fetch Shots for History - upon connection to a sound recorder, request a number of most recent takes to import as shots in MovieSlate’s History (duplicates are never imported). Note that when a Shot is changed from MovieSlate’s History tab, it’s metadata does not sync back to the recorder (and vice versa).

Tracks Order - choose the order in which the recorder’s sound tracks should be displayed. Please note: when synced with a recorder, track labels are set automatically and cannot be changed from Settings > Text Fields > Sound > Sound Tracks.

Page Scroll Style - choose whether to scroll/view a single page at a time, or to scroll pages as a continous list and view more than one page at a time. Since PDF annotations cannot actually span pages, the Continous setting is useful when creating new tramline annotations that appear to be extensions of tramlines from a previous page.

SingleCam Tramlines

These options are used when working on a SingleCam Script Dept project.

SingleCam Font Size - choose the font size used when creating a new Tramline Header.

SingleCam Contents - choose which fields should be included when creating a new Tramline Header. Drag the right edge of each field to change the order in which fields will be positioned within the Tramline Header.

Prompt for Recent - disable to prevent MovieSlate from prompting for recent Scene and Take information.

The document you are reading now. Tap the magifying glass button (at the top-right of the screen) to search the User Guide for specific information.

FAQs

A great troubleshooting resource that displays MovieSlate FAQs from our website. If you’re having problems with the app, chances are you’ll find a solution here. We update the FAQs often.

HOW-TO VIDEOS

We’re working on a series of short “How-To” videos that will demonstrate the use of MovieSlate in various workflows. The videos will be streamed to the app from the internet, and we plan to produce new videos every so often.

CONTACT US

If you’re having a problem with MovieSlate and cannot find the solution in our FAQs, then please use this button to send us an email.

You can also use this button to send us feature requests, or tell us who you are and what production(s) you’re using MovieSlate with (we love to brag about our customer’s projects).

WHAT’S NEW

The first time you run a MovieSlate update (installed from the App Store), this screen will appear to let you know about all the changes we’ve made to the app. We thought you might want to review that information later, so we also included here on the Help screen.

INFO

On the iPad, this information appears on the right side of the Help screen (before you tap any buttons). On the iPhone and iPod touch, tap the Info button to see which version of MovieSlate you are running, and gratuitous statistics about your MovieSlate shot log History.

When you run MovieSlate for the first time, Timecode is displayed using wall clock time (as set from the Settings app > General > Date & Time).

You can enable wall clock time by tapping MovieSlate’s timecode display, then tapping the Keypad’s clock button.

Wall clock time is not always the same as timecode! In fact, wall clock time is inappropriate for use with 23.976, 29.97, and 59.98 FPS because timecode at those NDF (Non Drop Frame) rates run 0.1% slower than wall clock time; drifting away from clock time by 3.59 seconds every hour. When you attempt to use those incompatible rates with clock time, MovieSlate will warn you (but not prevent you from doing so). You can, however, avoid drift by using DF (Drop Frame) rates which are designed to keep timecode and wall clock time in sync.

Tap the FPS field (on the Slate or Sound Dept screens) to choose the timecode's frames-per-second. Note that choosing Custom (text only) does not actually change the rate at which the timecode is displayed; it merely changes the text that appears in the slate's FPS field.

SETTING THE TIMECODE MANUALLY

To manually “jam” (set) your own timecode, tap the timecode display. Using the keypad, enter HH:MM:SS:FF digits, from left to right. You don’t have to enter colons or even enter all the digits.

The optional Timecode Sync feature sends timecode to, and receives timecode from compatible cameras, sound recorders, and timecode generators via headphone jack audio. Timecode Sync also provides real-time, continuous timecode syncing between multiple MovieSlates via headphone jack audio— and timecode/data between multiple MovieSlates on the same WiFi network. Timecode Sync also syncs timecode over an Ad Hoc wireless network provided by the Timecode Buddy:master (a portable WiFi timecode base station). Note that MovieSlate itself does not create a WiFi network, and that WiFi syncing only happens between MovieSlates that are on the same WiFi network.

The Timecode Sync feature is part of a MovieSlate PRO subscription, which you can purchase from our “In-App Store” in MovieSlate’s Settings > MovieSlate Store.

SYNCING TIMECODE BETWEEN MOVIESLATES

Using a WiFi connection, you can sync timecode (and slate data) between multiple MovieSlates on different iOS Devices (iPads, iPhones, or iPod touches).

Internal clock time often varies from iOS Device to iOS Device. So MovieSlate provides a means of synchronizing its (clock or jammed) timecode across multiple iOS Devices. WiFi continuously transmits timecode signals from one MovieSlate to one or more other MovieSlates. When the sender’s timecode starts or stops, so does the timecode on receiving MovieSlates. Only one MovieSlate can send timecode over a WiFi network; all other MovieSlates will receive timecode. For best results using WiFi timecode sync, we recommend you turn Bluetooth OFF from the Settings app on all iOS Devices involved. From each MovieSlate you want to WiFi sync: tap the MovieSlate tab, tap the timecode display, tap the keypad's Sync button, then tap the appropriate Send and Receive buttons.

ONE-TIME SYNCING A COMPLETE SET OF PRODUCTION DATA FROM ANOTHER MOVIESLATE

Your MovieSlate can request a complete set of production data from another MovieSlate on the same WiFi* network. From the MovieSlate, MultiCam, or Sound Dept screens: tap the PROD field; then tap the Choose a Project button; then choose one of the “Networked Projects” to import.

REMOTE CONTROLLING A MOVIESLATE FROM ANOTHER MOVIESLATE

You can use one MovieSlate to remotely control other MovieSlate(s) on the same WiFi* network. To enable remote control: tap the timecode display on a MovieSlate to be remotely controlled; tap the SYNC button; then the Choose Remote Control button; and choose the MovieSlate that will act as the remote control. As the remote control’s shot starts and stops, all its data (and some settings) are sent to the MovieSlate(s) being remote controlled.

TIMECODE SYNC WITH EXTERNAL DEVICES

Sync timecode with cameras, sound recorders, and other external timecode devices. Timecode data is sent as LTC audio signals over a cable that runs between the devices.

Supported Devices and Frame Rates

You’ll need a camera, sound recorder, or timecode generator that’s capable of sending and/or receiving LTC (Longitudinal Time Code) over an audio cable. Not all cameras have LTC-IN or LTC-OUT ports, but many professional-level cameras do (check your camera’s instruction manual if you’re not certain). MovieSlate can send and receive frame rates of 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97, 29.97 DF, 30, and 30 DF.

When sending timecode from MovieSlate, use a standard, unattenuated cable.

When receiving timecode in MovieSlate, use a custom, “attenuated” cable. The iPad/iPhone/iPod end of the cable must be a four connection mini jack (four visible bands; just like the jack used on Apple's iPhone headphones). The audio signal needs to be at MIC level— not LINE level which would overpower an iPad/iPhone/iPod headphone jack input. If your camera's LTC audio output is at LINE level or is too loud, you will have to attenuate (lower the volume of) the audio signal. Our support website has a page with links to sources of the proper cables.

Receiving Camera Timecode

Connect a cable from the timecode source (camera, sound recorder, timecode generator) to the headphone jack on your iOS Device.

From the MovieSlate or Sound Dept screens, tap the timecode display, then the SYNC keypad button. Tap the Receive button, then the Headphone Jack button.

When viewing footage that contains MovieSlate’s timecode display, you may notice that some frame digits may appear to be missing (particularly when receiving synched timecode via the headphone jack). Durations are accurate, however.

MovieSlate’s timecode pauses/resumes as you stop and start the camera.

Timecode received via the headphone jack inherently lags behind the source’s timecode by a few frames. To compensate for this lag, go to MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Sync > Calibrate LTC Lag, and zero out the frames and seconds. Go to the main MovieSlate screen, and SYNC your camera. Make sure the timecode is not paused. Record video of both the MovieSlate and Camera timecode displays running side-by-side. Import that video into an editor (like Avid, Final Cut Pro, Premiere). Scrub through the video and pause on a single frame. Note the difference (in frames) between the two timecode displays. Go back to MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Sync > Calibrate LTC Lag screen and enter that difference into the frames field.

When you disconnect the cable from the headphone jack, the timecode is “jammed” and continues running using MovieSlate’s internal clock. You can also jam sync by tapping the timecode display, then the Jam Sync button.

Sending MovieSlate Timecode

Connect a cable from the headphone jack on your iOS Device’s to a camera, or sound recorder.

From the MovieSlate or Sound Dept screens, tap the timecode display, then the SYNC keypad button. Tap the Send button, then the Headphone Jack button. If the camera does not recognize the timecode, or if the timecode appears to skip, you will need to adjust the iOS Device’s physical volume up/down buttons (generally, louder is better).

If you have a TCS (Timecode Systems) portable WiFi Hub such as a :pulse, :wave, or ::buddy master, then MovieSlate’s optional Timecode Sync feature can receive a steady stream of extremely accurate timecode over WiFi. TCBuddy can create its own internal (Ad Hoc) WiFi network, or join an external WiFi network. Learn More

USING THE TCS HUB’S CONTROL KNOB

The black control knob is on the top of the TCS Hub (shown on the left in this picture).

Power up the TCS Hub by pushing the control knob down for one second.

Power off the TCS Hub by pushing the control knob down for five seconds.

Access the TCS Hub menu system by pushing the control knob down— while the TCS Hub is powered up. Scroll through menu selections by rotating the knob clockwise or counter-clockwise. Select a menu item by briefly pushing the control knob down.

Run the Settings app on your iOS device. Tap the Wi-Fi item. From the Choose a Network list, tap the TCS Hub network. Wait for the WiFi icon to appear at the top of the screen before attempting the next step.

Run the MovieSlate app. From the MovieSlate or Sound Dept screens, tap the timecode display, then the SYNC keypad button. Tap the Sync With TCS Hub button. It only takes a few seconds to sync.

A four-digit password is required to change TCS Hub settings from MovieSlate. To view or set the password, select TCS Hub menu > System Settings > Set Passcode.

To change the TCS Hub timecode, userbits, or framerate: tap on those MovieSlate fields while synced with a TCS Hub, then enter the TCS Hub password.

To change TCS Hub Settings, tap the timecode display from the MovieSlate or Sound Dept screens while synced with a TCS Hub. Tap the Edit TCS Hub Settings button, then enter the TCS Hub password. From the TCS Hub Settings screen, tap an item to view an explanation of that setting, or consult the TCS Hub user guide.

If you have a Denecke TS-TCB slate, then MovieSlate (with a Pro Features subscription) can receive a steady stream of extremely accurate timecode from the TS-TCB over WiFi, and display MovieSlate “Show Credits” animations on the TS-TCB’s bottom display. Each credit is shown for a brief time— perhaps just a few frames— long enough for the camera to photograph loads of metadata that can be more legible than data handwritten on the Denecke slate, and much easier to read in bright light than the iPad screen. Learn More

QUICK START: CONNECTION + SYNC

The Denecke TS-TCB has a built-in TCS Hub used for communicating with MovieSlate. The TS-TCB can create its own internal (Ad Hoc) WiFi network, or join an external WiFi network. Please refer to the TCS Hub section of this User Guide for complete instructions. Meanwhile, here are the quick start instructions:

Configure the TS-TCB network as Ad Hoc or Infrastructure.

Run the iOS Settings app > WiFi - and join the TS-TCB’s network.

Run MovieSlate.

Make sure MovieSlate’s Pro Features are enabled.

Go to the MovieSlate tab.

Tap the timecode display.

Tap the SYNC button in the keypad.

Choose Connect to TCS Hub.

Upon connection, the text: MovieSlate will appear on the TS-TCB for a few seconds.

MovieSlate will indicate that it has synced with the Denecke TS-TCB, and start displaying TS-TCB timecode.

Show Credits should be set to Always or Only with synced Denecke TS-TCB in order to display credits on the Denecke TS-TCB.

Tip: try enabling the SLATE + ROLL and SCENE + TAKE credits. During animations, those credits are prefixed with a #, R, S, or T character. Note that this is regardless of the Prefix All Fields with Labels switch setting.

QUICK START: ACTION!

Go to the MovieSlate tab/screen, and sync to the Denecke TS-TCB by tapping the timecode display, SYNC button, then Connect to TCBuddy Source.

Open the Denecke TS-TCB clappersticks.

Credits may appear on MovieSlate and/or TS-TCB displays, depending upon the Settings configurations.

On the TS-TCB, a credit that’s 80 pixels or less will be centered on the display. Longer credits will be shown flush-left and truncated.

Close the TS-TCB sticks, and the Sticks Clap animations may appear on the TS-TCB and/or the MovieSlate displays. MovieSlate will start a shot— when MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Shot Triggers is set to Clapper or Denecke TS-TCB sticks.

Long animations (due to long durations and/or a large number of credits fields) can be cancelled by tapping MovieSlate’s full-screen credits animation screen.

Finally, tap MovieSlate’s End Shot button, and the Shot Ends animations may appear on the TS-TCB and/or the iPad.

Sticks Open credits can be tested without starting shots by tapping the hinge to the left of MovieSlate’s clapper sticks— when MovieSlate’s Settings > Behavior > Clapper Hinge is set to Simulates Denecke Sticks. To stop the animation, tap the hinge again.

If the MovieSlate app starts behaving strangely, then here are some things that will likely fix the problem:

Restart the MovieSlate app. Return to the Springboard by tapping the Home button once. From the Springboard, tap the Home button twice more to show the running apps. Hold your finger on the MovieSlate icon until the icons all jiggle. Tap the red circle in the MovieSlate app to completely quit the app. Tap the Home button to return to the Springboard, then launch MovieSlate again.

Reboot your iOS device. Hold down the iOS device’s Power button and Home button at the same time. Slide the red arrow button to the right. When the device is completely shut off, press the Power button again, then launch the MovieSlate app.

Reinstall the MovieSlate app. First connect backup your MovieSlate data from iTunes using iOS File Sharing. Then from your iOS device, hold your finger on the MovieSlate icon until the icons all jiggle. Tap the black X in the corner of the MovieSlate icon, which will delete the app. Sync the MovieSlate app to your iOS device using iTunes. Then restore your MovieSlate data using iOS File Sharing.

Contact Us. If all else fails, then please contact us for help. The easiest way is from MovieSlate’s Help > Contact Us screen.

All iOS Devices are on the same Network? To connect an iOS Device, run the Settings app, tap WiFi, then choose the Network (base station). Please note that MovieSlate does not create WiFi networks— it joins existing WiFi networks.

Is Bluetooth also ON? On some iOS Devices, received timecode can appear to skip if Bluetooth is enabled on that Device. You can disable Bluetooth from the General section of the Settings app.

Restart the MovieSlate app if other iOS Devices cannot connect to it properly. Return to the Springboard by tapping the Home button once. From the Springboard, tap the Home button twice more to show the running apps. Hold your finger on the MovieSlate icon until the icons all jiggle. Tap the red circle in the MovieSlate app to completely quit the app. Tap the Home button to return to the Springboard, then launch MovieSlate again.

The levels at the bottom of this screen should be in the green range. When they are, timecode should be displaying at the top of the screen. If the levels are not in the green range, there is too much attenuation on the cables (the audio is not loud enough).

Timecode received via the headphone jack inherently lags behind the source’s timecode by a few frames. MovieSlate can compensate for this lag.

Go to MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Sync > Calibrate LTC Lag.

Zero out the frames and seconds. Go to the main MovieSlate screen, and SYNC your camera. Make sure the timecode is not paused. Record video of both the MovieSlate and Camera timecode displays running side-by-side. Import that video into an editor (like Avid, Final Cut Pro, Premiere). Scrub through the video and pause on a single frame. Note the difference (in frames) between the two timecode displays. Go back to the MovieSlate’s Settings > Timecode Sync > Calibrate LTC Lag screen and enter that difference into the frames field.

MovieSlate may not function properly until iOS Privacy Controls have been properly configured. iOS 8 introduced enhanced privacy controls for apps running on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. Sometimes iOS privacy settings can cause MovieSlate to not function properly and you may not even be aware of it.

MovieSlate has features that require access to Contacts, Location, Photos, and the Microphone. If you're upgrading from iOS 6, you may never see an iOS Privacy Permissions confirmation when MovieSlate attempts to access one of those protected resources. In that case you can open your device's Settings app, tap on the Privacy item, then tap each of the Contacts, Location, Photos, and the Microphone items. In the list of apps that appears, ensure that MovieSlate has access to these items:

Photos - MovieSlate can use the built-in camera to create an Image Note. If you have the enabled the Save to Photos setting in MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History then MovieSlate will save a full size version of the Photo Note to the Photos app.

Microphone (and headphone jack) - are used by MovieSlate to record Audio Notes. MovieSlate's optional Timecode Sync feature uses the microphone and headphone jack to sync timecode from cameras, sound recorders, and other external LTC timecode sources. The microphone is used to detect the sound of external clapper sticks closing from iPad cases like the ikan T-Slate.

The personal information you enter into MovieSlate is used only to create your History Reports, and is not sent to any servers, except as part of the email you send to others. Your personal information is stored locally on your iOS device, and on your computer (when you sync your iOS device with iTunes), and no place else.

When you enable MovieSlate’s Settings > Shot Log History > Find & Save Locations, the MovieSlate app uses your iOS device’s radios to obtain the current location coordinates (latitude and longitude). In order to obtain the nearest street address, those geographical coordinates are then sent to our internet servers— along with your iOS device’s model number, iOS system version, and a unique ID (that we make up) to send the location coordinates and address data back to your device. No personal information or iOS device “UDID” codes are collected or sent to our servers. We use this information to understand which iOS system versions and devices our software is being used with. This also helps us diagnose and narrow down any bugs you are reporting.

When you send us an email, we keep the contents of the email and your email address confidential. In fact, all collected data is confidential. The support information we receive is used to improve the quality of our software— and is not shared with other organizations for commercial or other purposes.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY. THE MOVIESLATE APP IS LICENSED “AS-IS”, WITH NO WARRANTIES, AND YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOUR USE OF THE APP IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK. YOU BEAR ALL RISK OF USING IT. WE GIVE NO EXPRESS WARRANTIES OR GUARANTEES REGARDING THE APP OR ANY RELATED PRODUCTS, SERVICES, OR TECHNOLOGIES. WE DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

LIMITATION OF REMEDIES AND DAMAGES. THE MAXIMUM YOU MAY RECOVER FROM US AND OUR SUPPLIERS FOR DIRECT DAMAGES IS U.S. $0.01. YOU CANNOT RECOVER ANY OTHER DAMAGES, INCLUDING CONSEQUENTIAL, LOST PROFITS, SPECIAL, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES. YOU ALSO CANNOT RECOVER FOR ANY LOSS OF DATA, PRIVACY, CONFIDENTIALITY, OR PROFITS; OR ANY INABILITY TO USE THE APP. THIS LIMITATION APPLIES TO: (A) ANYTHING RELATED TO THE APP, SERVICES, CONTENT (INCLUDING CODE) ON THIRD PARTY INTERNET SITES, OR THIRD PARTY PROGRAMS; AND (B) CLAIMS FOR BREACH OF CONTRACT; BREACH OF WARRANTY, GUARANTEE, OR CONDITION; STRICT LIABILITY, NEGLIGENCE, OR OTHER TORT, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. IT APPLIES EVEN IF WE KNEW OR SHOULD HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF THE DAMAGES.